Spain migrants: Sole survivor rescued in dinghy in Atlantic

sole survivor

A woman has been found clinging to an upturned inflatable dinghy about 138 miles (220km) off the Canary Islands – the only survivor of a migrant tragedy feared to have claimed 52 lives. She was spotted in a poor state by a passing merchant ship and emergency services flew her to safety. Two bodies were found by the coastguard and the woman told officials that more than 50 other people were on board. More than 8,000 migrants have reached Spain’s Canary Islands this year. Many of them set off from a stretch of coastline between Tarfaya in Morocco and Laayoune in Western Sahara, a disputed territory claimed by Morocco. The route has become increasingly popular as migrant passages to Europe through the Mediterranean have become harder to take. However, human rights group Walking Borders has described it as the world’s most dangerous migration route. (BBC)…[+]