In Nouadhibou, migrant round-ups follow EU-Mauritania deal
By the AFREEQUE newsroom, based on Kassataya
After the €210 million migration deal signed in early 2024 between the European Union and Mauritania, checks and round-ups are increasing in Nouadhibou against migrants heading to Spain. Malian women say they have been living in hiding since their husbands were expelled, according to a La Libre report relayed by Kassataya.
Checks and arrests of migrants are increasing in Nouadhibou, in northern Mauritania, after the migration partnership agreement signed between the European Union and Mauritania on 7 March 2024. The €210 million agreement notably provides for strengthening the resources of the Mauritanian authorities to manage, monitor and control borders, according to La Libre.
The partnership notably targets Mauritanian waters, which lie on the Atlantic route to Spain’s Canary Islands. In 2024, more than 45,000 migrants arrived in the archipelago, a record, before their number fell by 45% a year after the partnership came into force, according to the Frontex agency cited by La Libre.
In Nouadhibou, Malian migrants say they saw their husbands arrested by police and then expelled, and say they are hiding to avoid being arrested themselves. Police intervene quickly in some neighbourhoods of the city, including at night, according to testimonies collected by La Libre.
The situation is part of a migration route already marked by interceptions at sea. In August, 315 migrants were rescued off Nouadhibou (315 migrants rescued off Nouadhibou).
