Coastguard rescues 229 African migrants

Spanish coastguards have rescued 229 Africans trying to reach the Canary Islands, after intercepting a boat off the islands' coast. The officers found the 30m fishing boat yesterday evening about 60 miles south of Gran Canaria and took the would-be immigrants to the port of Los Cristianos in Tenerife.

All the migrants were male, including at least 20 children, a spokeswoman for Spain's 112 emergency line said. "Such a large fishing boat could not have set off from the shore directly into the sea," Juan Antonio Corujo, from Spain's Red Cross, told Spanish national radio.

"This boat must have been loaded from a pier, or probably smaller boats took people to the boat once it was at sea." The Red Cross treated the boat's occupants in Tenerife and five were taken to health centres for treatment for dehydration and hypothermia. Dozens of Africans have died in recent months trying to take advantage of calmer summer seas to make the journey to the Canary Islands and Spanish mainland in search of jobs.

Tens of thousands have made it to Spanish shores in recent years, prompting Spain's government to toughen its line on illegal immigration. Many thousands more are believed to have drowned or died of thirst or exposure in the attempt.

According to data collated from Spain's Interior Ministry, between January and August, the total number of illegal immigrants arriving by boat on Spain's coastline fell 8 per cent compared to a year earlier and wasdown 64 per cent on 2006.