The Moroccan navy has picked up 242 migrants from sub-Saharan Africa who were trying to pass the Mediterranean Sea to Spain in flimsy boats, the official MAP press agency reported late Friday.
It said the vagrants, including 50 women and 12 children, were saved from several inflatable boats which had got into crisis.
“The migrants, some of whom were unwell, were taken safely to port,” the news agency said.
So far this year, more than 15,000 such migrants have made it to Spain, 12,000 by the sea route, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) predicts. More than 200 have sunk in the attempt.
Aiming to halt the migrant entrance, the European Union last year gave Morocco 140 million euros to support attempts to restrict human traffickers.
