Country rescues 177 migrants off southern coast

September 7, 2016 6:51 AM

In 2015, 3,845 migrants entered Spain via sea crossings, according to the International Organization for Migration

Migrants, who are part of a group intercepted aboard a dinghy off the coast of the Mediterranean sea, stand on a rescue boat upon arriving at a port in Malaga, southern Spain, September 6, 2016.

Spanish authorities said on Tuesday they had rescued 177 migrants from sub-Saharan Africa on six boats off the southern Mediterranean coast.

Spain's maritime rescue service said it had spotted some of the boats by airplane. It sent ships to carry out the rescues at various points on the country's southern shore, including near Malaga. There were eight minors among those rescued, it added.

In 2015, 3,845 migrants entered Spain via sea crossings, according to the International Organization for Migration, a tiny fraction of the 956,000 that reached Europe the same way.

Other boats have been intercepted recently off Spain, including when some 50 migrants were rescued in August, some of whom had attempted to cross from Morocco's northern coast.