DAKAR: Senegalese authorities intercepted 200 “irregular migrants” on Friday, according to the army, just days after a recent maritime tragedy where 90 people drowned off the coast of Mauritania.
The Senegalese navy detained a boat near the northern city of Saint-Louis, marking the latest in a series of interventions over recent months.
Last week, the Senegalese army reported the interception of another vessel carrying over 250 irregular migrants from various African countries.
At least 25 people were died when a boat capsized near Mauritania’s capital, Nouakchott, on Monday.
In early July, a boat carrying around 170 people from Senegal to Europe capsized off the Mauritanian coast, resulting in nearly 90 fatalities. The disaster led Senegal’s Prime Minister Ousmane Sonko to urge people to avoid perilous crossings in overcrowded, unseaworthy vessels lacking adequate provisions.
As surveillance intensifies in the Mediterranean, the perilous route across the Atlantic is increasingly used. According to Spanish NGO Caminando Fronteras, over 5,000 people died trying to reach Spain by sea in the first five months of this year, marking the highest daily average toll since the organization began recording in 2007.
