The disappearance of 18 occupants of a skiff that was nine days adrift in Mediterranean waters focuses the investigation opened by the authorities after the rescue, on Wednesday, of five survivors transferred to the port of Ibiza by the Guardamar Concepción Arenal of Salvamento Marítimo. The boat was located about 40 miles south of Cabrera after being detected by a Frontex plane.
The rescued people, of Maghrebi origin, reported that during the days they remained aimlessly and in extreme conditions -without water, food or possibility to ask for help-, several of the occupants began to throw themselves into the sea, among them possible families with minors. The Government Delegation has confirmed that the statements of the survivors point to an episode of great gravity, still pending verification.
After their arrival in Ibiza, the five immigrants received humanitarian and health care from Red Cross volunteers before being handed over to the police for identification and the opening of the corresponding file, according to Periódico de Ibiza. The authorities keep the investigation open and do not rule out extending the search for the missing, despite the time elapsed and the difficult sea conditions.
This rescue takes place in a context of increased migratory pressure on the Pitiusas. The National Police recently reported the arrest in Ibiza of four alleged Algerian skippers linked to two small boats located on October 27, one 53 miles south and the other off the coast of Formentera. Among those arrested is a minor.
Investigations indicate that two of the detainees skippered a boat with 17 occupants, while the other two were in charge of another one with 23 migrants. Both boats, about six meters long and equipped with Yamaha engines, would have been used as
