Almería has suffered so far this year the arrival by sea of around 3,500 illegal immigrants, some of them in small boats or precarious boats, but also in high-speed narco-boats that the mafias commonly use for drug trafficking and that now They are beginning to use it for human trafficking as well.
In recent days, the coasts of Almería have seen the incessant landing of illegal immigrants on its beaches, in broad daylight and under the unusual gaze of bathers. Recent videos published on social networks show this new trend: high-speed semi-rigid and inflatable boats used for drug trafficking between North Africa and Europe are now chosen for the illegal entry of hundreds of North African immigrants into the continent.
The immigration policy expert Rubén Pulido has assessed this new modus operandi of illegal immigration mafias: “Before they used them to transport drugs, now to transport dozens of illegal immigrants that they leave on Spanish coasts every week. The narcolanchas continue to act as taxis between Morocco and the Andalusian coast; They enjoy all impunity and take advantage of it », he has pointed out on his social networks.
Before they used them to transport drugs, now to transport dozens of illegal immigrants who leave on Spanish coasts every week. The narco-boats continue to act as taxis between Morocco and the Andalusian coast, they enjoy all impunity and take advantage of it. pic.twitter.com/YceLc3P90W
— Ruben Pulido (@rubnpulido) August 5, 2023
3,500 immigrants arrived in Almería
The coordinator of the Red Cross in Almería, Francisco Vicente, explained that some 3,500 illegal immigrants have arrived in Almería by sea throughout 2023, figures that double the data from last year (1,900).
«They are being a very intense few weeks. We have had more than 1,500 people between July and the days that we have been in August », he affirmed in statements to Efe. Only between Friday the 28th and this past Tuesday the 1st, the Red Cross had a total of 31 interventions with 284 illegal immigrants treated at the Temporary Assistance Center for Foreigners (CATE) in the port of Almería.
Vicente pointed out that the majority profile of immigrants arriving in this province are Maghrebis, especially Algerians, although a “change in trend” has been detected with the incipient arrival of more women and children, something unusual up to now in small boats with this origin.
For his part, the national coordinator of boats of the Jupol police union in Almería, Héctor Gómez, assures that they are already “almost two and a half long months of increases in the daily arrival of boats. The CATE (Centro de Attention Temporal de Extranjeros) has not been closed in almost a month and a half. They go in and out. They are released and another 50 or 40 arrive. There are not enough police officers », he denounced.
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