A shipwreck off Tunisia that claimed the lives of at least 40 African migrants has once again exposed the lethal risks of irregular sea crossings on routes to Europe, the UN migration agency said on Thursday.
Tag Archives: African migrants
Dozens killed in U.S. bombing on Yemeni detention centre for African migrants
Yemen’s Houthi authorities on Monday alleged a U.S. airstrike hit a prison holding African migrants, killing at least 68 people and wounding 47 others. The U.S. military had no immediate comment.
The strike in Yemen’s Saada governorate, a stronghold for the Houthis, is the latest incident in the country’s decadelong war to kill African migrants from Ethiopia and other nations who risk crossing the nation for a chance to work in neighboring Saudi Arabia.
Graphic footage shows aftermath of explosion
Graphic footage aired by the Houthis’ al-Masirah satellite news channel showed what appeared to be dead bodies and others wounded at the site. The Interior Ministry said some 115 migrants had been detained at the site.
The Civil Defense agency said at least 68 people had been killed and 47 others wounded in the attack.
Footage from the site analyzed by the AP suggested some kind of explosion took place there, with its cement walls seemingly peppered by debris fragments and the wounds suffered by those there.
A woman’s voice, soft in the footage, can be heard repeating the start of a prayer in Arabic: “In the name of God.” An occasional gunshot rang out as medics sought to help those wounded.
African migrants caught in middle of Yemen’s war
Ethiopians and other African migrants for years have landed in Yemen, braving the war-torn nation to try and reach Saudi Arabia for work. The Houthi rebels allegedly make tens of thousands of dollars a week smuggling migrants over the border.
Migrants from Ethiopia have found themselves detained, abused and even killed in Saudi Arabia and Yemen during the war. An Oct. 3, 2022, letter to the kingdom from the U.N. said its investigators “received concerning allegations of cross-border artillery shelling and small arms fire allegedly by Saudi security forces, causing the deaths of up to 430 and injuring 650 migrants.”
Saudi Arabia has denied killing migrants.
Morocco intercepts a boat with 141 people as African migrants increasingly attempt to reach Spain
The Moroccan navy said it intercepted 141 people attempting to traverse the Atlantic Ocean as migration from West Africa to Spain’s Canary Islands has spiked since the beginning of the year.
Morocco’s Royal Armed Forces said in a statement Sunday it was able to rescue all passengers on a boat off the coast of the Western Sahara, a disputed territory with a coastline that Morocco has controlled since 1975.
It said the 141 people all came from sub-Saharan Africa and likely embarked more than a week earlier from Mauritania — Morocco’s southern neighbor and the primary point of departure for migrants attempting to reach Spain’s Canary Islands.
The interception was the largest that Moroccan authorities have reported this year.
The Canary Islands are roughly 62 miles (100 kilometers) from Morocco’s Atlantic coast but pirogues — the wooden vessels migrants often use to cross — often launch from as far south as the Gambia, from where the journey can take up to 10 days, according to the Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime.
Spain’s Interior Ministry reported 11,704 migrants had arrived to the Canaries as of Feb. 15 — more than a sixfold increase from a year earlier. The majority have departed from Mauritania, which recently signed a 210 million euro agreement with the European Union that included funding for migration patrolling and humanitarian aid.
Fire kills African migrants at detention centre in Yemen
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Several African migrants were killed in a fire at a overcrowded migrant detention centre in the Yemeni capital, Sana’a over the weekend.
The centre housed migrants mostly from Ethiopia, according to officials with the UN Migration Agency (IOM) who say as many as 30 people died and some 170 reported injured.
Migrants and guards are reported to be among the dead.
The fire started shortly after renewed Saudi airstrikes in Yemen as UN officials say conditions at the detention facility have been in bad state even before the strike.
IOM’s Carmela Godeu said in a tweet that her team “are extremely saddened by the death of migrants & guards resulting from a fire at a holding facility in Sana’a, Yemen, today. 8 people confirmed dead; the total death toll is reported to be much higher. All those affected and their families are in our thoughts.”
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She added that “IOM is responding particularly with emergency health care for over 170 injured, more than 90 of them are in a serious condition. Our teams are also distributing food to those affected and we continue monitoring the situation closely.”
Meanwhile Godeu said “the cause of the fire incident in the holding facility remains unclear. But this is just one of the many dangers that migrants have faced during the past 6 years of the crisis in Yemen. All people, including migrants, should be afforded protection and safety.”
#IOM is responding particularly with emergency health care for over 170 injured, more than 90 of them are in a serious condition. Our teams are also distributing food to those affected and we continue monitoring the situation closely. (2/3)
— Carmela Godeau (@CarmelaGodeau) March 7, 2021
The Houthi authorities fighting the war in Yemen have accused the IOM and the UN of failing deport migrants but rather housing them.
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Despite Yemen’s endless war, tens of thousands of migrants – mostly from the Horn of Africa – try and pass through the country every year, hoping to find work in neighbouring Saudi Arabia.
African migrants left to die in Saudi Arabia detention centres
Source: Africafeeds.com
Over 20 migrants die after they were thrown into sea off Djibouti
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The United Nation has said more than 20 African migrants died after their smugglers threw them overboard off the coast of Djibouti.
According to the International Organisation for Migration (IOM), at least 80 people were thrown off to reduce the load on the vessel.
The boat was reportedly carrying about 200 migrants, including women and children at the time of the incident.
IOM officials say the migrants were headed to Yemen in order to reach Saudi Arabia to seek for jobs.
The head of IOM, António Vitorino said “At least 20 migrants drowned and 60 others are in distress after being thrown off a boat by smugglers.
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Prosecuting traffickers and smugglers who prey on the vulnerabilities of migrants must be a priority.”
Grim news of more migrant deaths off the coast of Djibouti today.
At least 20 migrants drowned and 60 others are in distress after being thrown off a boat by smugglers.
Prosecuting traffickers and smugglers who prey on the vulnerabilities of migrants must be a priority.
— António Vitorino (@IOMchief) March 3, 2021
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Source: Africafeeds.com
Israel calls on all African migrants to leave or be jailed
JERUSALEM-(MaraviPost)-The government of Israel has appealed to all African migrants to leave the country or be arrested.
Reports say, the Israel government has added that it will give each and every African migrant a total cash of US$3, 500 to go back to their respective countries or third countries within the next 90 days.
The country`s authorities have threatened to be arresting every migrant if their commands on them are not met. However, the UN refugee agency said the move is a violation of international and Israel laws.
The Israeli government says their return will be humane and “voluntary”. The order exempts children, elderly people, and victims of slavery and human trafficking.
A spokesperson for Israel’s Population and Immigration Authority told the BBC there were currently 38,000 “infiltrators” in Israel, of whom just 1,420 were being held in detention facilities.
Many of the migrants – who are mostly from Eritrea and Sudan – say they came to Israel to seek asylum after fleeing persecution and conflict, but the authorities regard them as economic migrants.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has claimed that an unchecked influx of African migrants could threaten Israel’s Jewish character.