3,446 Illegal Migrants Left Algeria On “Death Boats” In The Course Of 2020

Official Italian and Spanish statistics indicate that the number of Algerian “harragas” or illegal migrants who left the country on “death boats” have reached about 3,446 since the beginning of this year.

These figures show that the number of “harragas” remained at the same levels compared to previous years, in line with the official data of the European Border Agency “Frontex”, in its Official statistics, especially with the emergence of a suspicious focus in the recent period and talk about a large number of Algerian “harragas” who arrived in Spain and Italy, but official figures confirm that there is an intentional inflation of the statistics of illegal immigration.

In this context, the number of Algerians who have reached the coasts of southern Spain since last January has reached about 2,703, according to official statistics of the Spanish Ministry of the Interior published by the newspaper “El Confidencial” a few days ago, and the statistics of the Spanish Interior Ministry indicated that the Algerians are at the forefront of the “harragas” or illegal migrants who arrived in Spain in 2020

This represents about 55 percent of the 4,916 clandestine immigrants who arrived at the country’s coast at the beginning of the year (until the end of July).

During the recently-held meeting between the Spanish Interior Minister Fernando Grande Marlaska Gómez, who visited Algeria on Monday, and the Minister of the Interior, Local Assemblies and Country Planning, Kamel Beldjoud, the two officials tackled the secret immigration file (the “Harga”).

Mr. Beldjoud indicated that he’d discussed with his Spanish counterpart what he called “opportunists and mafia drug networks.” In this regard, he highlighted the “necessity” for concerted efforts to exchange information between the two countries in order to fight them.

On Monday, the Italian Interior Ministry, “El Viminali”, published statistics regarding the number of “harragas” or illegal migrants who have arrived in their country on “death boats” since the beginning of this year, as part of a compiled list in which the Algerians finished in fourth spot.

According to the relevant statistics seen by ”Echorouk”, 743 Algerian “harragas” or illegal migrants arrived on the coasts of Italy, most of them in Sardinia and some on the island of Lampedusa from Libya, which represents 5 percent of the arrivals, including Tunisian “harragas” with a number of 6,104, which represents 41 percent of the arrivals, then Bangladesh with 2,278 (15 percent), Côte d’Ivoire with 857 (6 percent), and Algeria with 677 (5 percent).