August 29, 2024 – 1:00 PM – Morocco
©
The Public Prosecution Office in Nador has launched an investigation into an incident in which the Spanish Coast Guard collided with a boat carrying migrants during a chase off the coast of Melilla.
A video of the incident, which has gone viral on social media, shows a small boat carrying four migrants, including a young girl, being chased by a Spanish patrol boat en route to Melilla. The Spanish coast guard, in a large rubber boat, eventually rammed the pleasure boat to stop it, causing it to capsize and its passengers to fall into the water.
Read also: Spanish Civil Guard hits Moroccan pleasure boat (Video)
The incident received a lot of attention on social media. The authorities in Nador launched a judicial investigation under the supervision of the Public Prosecution Office to determine the circumstances of this incident.
The incident occurred on Sunday, August 25. Four people on a pleasure boat were sailing towards the coast of Melilla without heeding the warnings of Moroccan gendarmerie patrols that pursued them to the occupied enclave. As they approached the coast of Melilla, the Spanish Coast Guard in a large rubber boat tried to stop the boat. After several warnings with audio and visual signals, the Spanish officers carried out a dangerous maneuver by ramming the back of the boat, causing the four people to fall into the sea.
Read also: 300 people try to swim from Morocco to Ceuta
The Moroccan Gendarmerie intervened to rescue the four people on board. They were taken to the Gendarmerie headquarters in the port of Beni Ansar (Nador). One of the migrants, who lost consciousness, was transferred to the regional hospital in Nador for treatment.
