Spain set a record in 2024 with 63,970 irregular migrant arrivals, highlighting challenges in the Canary Islands and reforms to legalize 300,000 migrants annually by 2025.
Spain set a new record for irregular migrant arrivals in 2024, with 63,970 individuals entering the country by land or sea, according to data from the Interior Ministry released on Thursday.
This marks the second consecutive year of record-breaking numbers, surpassing the 2023 total of 55,718, which was nearly double the figure recorded in 2022.
In 2024, the majority of migrants — 46,843 — undertook the perilous sea journey from northwest Africa to the Canary Islands. Tragically, an average of 30 lives were lost each day attempting to reach Spain, according to a December report by the NGO Caminando Fronteras. The report estimates nearly 10,000 fatalities on routes to the Canary Islands alone.
The president of the Canary Islands emphasized the region’s struggle to manage the influx, particularly with minors, noting that services are overwhelmed and unable to provide adequate care in line with human rights standards.
Spain’s Migration Minister, Elma Saiz, addressed the issue during an interview with Spanish broadcaster RTVE, stating that the government is working towards an agreement to automatically transfer young migrants to the mainland.
She also announced that Spain’s new immigration law, coming into effect in 2025, will legalize around 300,000 undocumented migrants annually over three years.
“2025 will position Spain as a model for inclusion and harmonious coexistence with migrants,” Saiz said. She also praised the EU’s Migration Pact, agreed upon in 2024, which will be implemented alongside Spain’s reforms in 2025.
The second-largest migration route into Spain in 2024 involved nearly 14,500 arrivals by ship to the mainland or the Balearic Islands in the Mediterranean.
Additionally, over 2,500 migrants crossed into Ceuta, Spain’s North African enclave, more than doubling the figure from 2023.
Hundreds of thousands of migrants from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua, and Venezuela face possible deportation next month as the U.S. moves to revoke their legal protections.
U.S. officials highlighted new barriers and military support at U.S.-Mexico border near San Ysidro, citing a drop in illegal crossings.
The U.S. has deported hundreds of mostly Venezuelan migrants to El Salvador, where they are being held without trial in the country’s notorious Terrorism Confinement Center (CECOT), a mega-prison known for its severe conditions.
Libyan security authorities have recovered 29 more bodies from a mass grave in the southeast, bringing the total number of migrant bodies found in recent days to 57, according to officials.
Dozens of Venezuelan migrants are stranded at the Costa Rica-Panama border, unable to return home as they plead for transit permission through Panama.
The Houthi group in Yemen claimed responsibility for a series of missile and drone attacks, targeting Ben Gurion airport in Israel and U.S. warships in the Red Sea.
The European Union views the Palestinian Authority as "best placed to govern Gaza," according to EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas, following her meeting with Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Mustafa in Ramallah.
U.S. President Donald Trump has indicated that he is prepared to take a more flexible stance on new tariffs for automobiles and other goods than initially expected.
A group of top Trump administration officials reportedly shared sensitive military plans over the encrypted messaging app Signal just hours before the United States launched strikes on Houthi targets in Yemen, sparking a political storm in Washington.
Bank of America (BofA) said the recent volatility in Turkish markets has so far had only a limited inflationary impact, stressing that Türkiye’s economic management remains in control.
In a groundbreaking study published in Cell on January 18, Chinese researchers have unveiled a novel cancer treatment that ingeniously disguises tumors as pig tissue, triggering the body’s immune system to mount a hyperacute rejection response against the cancer cells.
Sweden’s Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson stated on Thursday that purchasing U.S. weapons does not pose a security risk for his country, but emphasized the need for Europe to reduce its reliance on American defense systems. His comments come amid growing discussions within Europe.
NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams completed an unexpectedly long 286-day mission on the ISS, returning to Earth aboard a SpaceX capsule after delays caused by technical issues with Boeing’s Starliner.
Russian President Vladimir Putin agreed on Tuesday to a proposal by U.S. President Donald Trump that Russia and Ukraine cease attacking each other's energy infrastructure for 30 days, the Kremlin said following a lengthy phone discussion between the leaders.
Mexican forces have dismantled a massive meth lab in Zacatecas, dealing a blow to a Sinaloa Cartel faction.
The Houthi group in Yemen claimed responsibility for a series of missile and drone attacks, targeting Ben Gurion airport in Israel and U.S. warships in the Red Sea.
The European Union views the Palestinian Authority as "best placed to govern Gaza," according to EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas, following her meeting with Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Mustafa in Ramallah.
U.S. President Donald Trump has indicated that he is prepared to take a more flexible stance on new tariffs for automobiles and other goods than initially expected.
A group of top Trump administration officials reportedly shared sensitive military plans over the encrypted messaging app Signal just hours before the United States launched strikes on Houthi targets in Yemen, sparking a political storm in Washington.
Bank of America (BofA) said the recent volatility in Turkish markets has so far had only a limited inflationary impact, stressing that Türkiye’s economic management remains in control.
The Houthi group in Yemen claimed responsibility for a series of missile and drone attacks, targeting Ben Gurion airport in Israel and U.S. warships in the Red Sea.
The European Union views the Palestinian Authority as "best placed to govern Gaza," according to EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas, following her meeting with Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Mustafa in Ramallah.
U.S. President Donald Trump has indicated that he is prepared to take a more flexible stance on new tariffs for automobiles and other goods than initially expected.
A group of top Trump administration officials reportedly shared sensitive military plans over the encrypted messaging app Signal just hours before the United States launched strikes on Houthi targets in Yemen, sparking a political storm in Washington.
Bank of America (BofA) said the recent volatility in Turkish markets has so far had only a limited inflationary impact, stressing that Türkiye’s economic management remains in control.
You can download the AnewZ application from Play Store and the App Store.
What is your opinion on this topic?
Leave the first comment