By GB News (World News) | Created at 2025-01-08 18:16:07 | Updated at 2025-01-09 09:17:32
15 hours ago
A baby boy born on a small crowded boat was among 60 migrants rescued from a rubber dinghy off Spain's Canary Islands.
A photo of the baby boy was made public on Wednesday by Spain’s maritime rescue service.
While Spain celebrated Epiphany on Monday, the crew of Guardamar Talia rescue craft saved the group of migrants adrift in a small dinghy headed for the Canary Islands.
The photo shows the newborn and his mother surrounded by men and women crammed onto the board - so packed that people were sitting on its sides.
Reuters
The mother and baby were reportedly taken by helicopter and ambulance to the Hospital Insular of Lanzarote in the Canary Islands.
Over 61,000 people reached Spain via sea last year, according to the Interior Ministry.
Around 46,000 of those ended up in the Canary islands, around 59 miles from Morocco.
They included thousands of unaccompanied minors.
Over 61,000 people reached Spain via sea last year, according to the Interior Ministry
Reuters
The International Organisation for Migration attributes at least 5,000 deaths to migration journeys since it began monitoring statistics in 2014.
However, Spanish migration rights group Caminando Fronteras said the real death toll is higher, reaching over 10,000 people last year alone.
The Maritime Safety and Rescue Society said: "Christmas ends in the Canary Islands with the rescue of a baby born in the middle of a sea crossing. Our crews in the Canary Islands have started the year in an intense way. Although all the rescues and assistance deserve recognition, this is one intervention that inevitably draws attention.”
