The Royal Moroccan Navy and coastal surveillance units rescued, on October 23 south of Dakhla, in two different operations, two pirogues carrying on board 189 potential irregular migrants from Senegal, including 18 women and 29 minors, as well as three deceased.
According to military sources, the two pirogues, which sailed from the Senegalese coast on October 2 and 17, respectively, were headed for the Canary Islands.
The same source stressed that the rescued people received the necessary first aid on board, before being safely transported to the nearest national ports, where they were turned over to the Royal Gendarmerie for the standard administrative procedures, while the three deceased were handed over to the Civil Protection for transfer to the morgue of Hassan II Hospital in Dakhla.
Earlier on October 15, Royal Navy and coastal surveillance units rescued north-east of the Port of Tan-Tan, approximately 20 km from the coast, an inflatable boat with 59 sub-Saharan migrants on board, as part of a search and rescue mission.
The Tan Tan and Mehdia judicial police arrested, on August 23, five individuals for their alleged connection to criminal networks involved in organizing irregular migration and human trafficking, as part of security operations carried out by the national security services to fight against illegal migration.
A security source stated that the suspects were arrested during two separate security operations, adding that an attempt to migrate illegally by sea using a fishing boat was aborted in Mehdia, resulting in the arrest of four people, aged between 29 and 36, who were caught in flagrante delicto for preparing this operation on behalf of a group of potential illegal migrants.
