At least 14 people died after their boat sank off Boujdour, Spanish NGO says

At least 14 people died after they drowned off Boujdour while attempting to irregularly migrate to the Canary Islands, Spanish activist and founder of migrants NGO said on Thursday. The migrants sounded an SOS after their inflatable boat was pierced, Helena Maleno of the Caminando Fronteras said.

Malena said that one of the migrants sent her an audio in which she was asking for help. «We are here, Helena. I am a nine-month pregnant woman, and I am in the zodiac. All the children who were in the zodiac have disappeared. Everybody is disappearing and so far, we haven't seen the navy», said the migrant.

? En estos momentos se hunde una neumática con cincuenta y ocho personas al sur de Gran Canaria. Llevan horas pidiendo auxilio, ni Marruecos ni España han activado aún los medios necesarios para salvar sus vidas.

— Helena Maleno Garzón (@HelenaMaleno) December 28, 2023

Helena Maleno told Spanish news agency EFE that the migrants left on Wednesday, heading to the Canary Islands. She added that Morocco has not helped the migrants yet. The Spanish maritime rescue teams have not intervened either, she claimed.

She said that she fears the migrants would suffer the same fate as that of several people who died on June 21 when trying to reach Gran Canaria, after spending the night waiting for help.

This incident led to the filing of a complaint by the Public Prosecutor's Office of the Canary Islands.