The Civil Guard will finally be able to leave on dry land the 168 immigrants of Senegalese origin who were rescued from the sea, stranded in a canoe near Mauritana. After four days in search of a solution, the efforts of the Ministry of the Interior so that they could remain on land safely have borne fruit with the acceptance of Senegal. According to government sources, in the next few hours they will arrive at the port of Saint Louis.
These sources stress that despite Mauritania's refusal to accept that the Civil Guard would leave the passengers of the cayuco on their land, at no time was the option of being sent to the Canary Islands raised.
Finally, Senegal has accepted the return of its nationals, who fled the country paying the mafias to get on a canoe. The Civil Guard ship Río Bravo, which had left the Canary Islands for Mauritania, found the cayuco stranded 80 miles off the coast of this African country.
According to these sources consulted, Mauritania rejected the landing because according to the legislation the ship did not have a gendarme, the competent authority for this type of action. The Civil Guard claimed to be able to dock based on maritime law by which disembarkation must be allowed if it has been the product of a rescue.
This conflict caused the ship to spend several days circling around the bay of Nouadhibou (Mauritania) until it finally headed for Senegal. Currently, this country is the best partner that the Government has for immigration control and the proof is that in recent years the boats that arrive in Spain from this country have been reduced from 55 in 2021 to five this 2023.
When they were found, several of the people who were in the canoe were in a state of dehydration. Police sources assure that the members of the armed institute have provided them with possible water and food and have been provided with telephone numbers to speak with their families, based on the version of some police associations that have denounced that they have been kept in "painful conditions." ”.
