Date Published: 19/02/2021
ARCHIVED - 97 illegal migrants reach the Murcia coast as another flotilla of small boats arrive from Africa
ARCHIVED ARTICLE
22 more Algerian nationals reached the beaches of the Costa Blanca in Alicante
The number of unauthorized migrants reaching the coastline of the Region of Murcia on the latest flotilla of small boats to make the crossing from north Africa continued to rise on Wednesday as more information was released, eventually reaching 97 on board 7 small craft.
The first boat reached Cala del Magre in Calblanque with 16 people on board and a second was intercepted south-west of Monte de Cenizas with another 14 passengers. 13 more followed at Playa Isla de los Lobos in Mazarrón before another 16 were intercepted south-east of Cabo de Palos and 14 more in a fifth craft.
24 more were later intercepted on two boats south of Monte de Cenizas, according to the central government delegation in Murcia, which also confirms that all of those detained were Algerians and have been found to be in good health. They will now undergo Covid testing and if the results are negative will be quarantined in the Hotel Cenajo, in the north-west of the Region.
This latest wave of migrants also appears to have reached the neighbouring province of Alicante, where three small boats containing 22 migrants reached Benidorm, Calpe and Benitatxell. Among those on board were a couple who were travelling with their two small children, aged 2 and 6, and all were taken to Alicante for PCR testing.
Having returned negative results, they will now quarantine in a hostel in Alicante.
It seems likely that the warm, calm weather of recent days is one of the factors behind this resumption of the flow of migrants heading across the Mediterranean for southern Spain as a means of entry into the EU, part of organised "waves" of migrants run by organised criminal gangs.
This type of "mass wave" has become the most popular method of illegal migration, the plan being for a number of boats to launch at the same time, aiming for different points along the coastline, with the aim of spreading the resources of the coastguard thin in order to ensure that as few migrants as possible are intercepted.
For the migrants detained, though, their success in reaching Europe is likely to be short-lived, as Spain refuses to grant any sort of residency in Spain for those who arrive illegally in the country and will try to extradite those who have proof of their identity back to their country of origin.
Illegal immigrants are not permitted to work in Spain and many of those who enter illegally end up being exploited, only able to find work without a legal contract in clandestine operations or agricultural concerns.