Nearly half a million would-be illegal immigrants from central and west Africa have gathered in makeshift camps in Mauritania awaiting their chance of a passage to Europe, the Spanish daily El Pais reported on Tuesday, citing government and international organisation sources. | A half million people isn't immigration, it's an invasion... |
Mauritania has announced it will take "immediate" action to fight illegal immigration, including stepping up patrols along its borders and the construction of reception centres. Most of Mauritania - a sparsely populated country with just 3.2 million inhabitants - is desert, and its 2,400 kilometre long border is extremely difficult to patrol. A total 2,400 Africans have landed on the Canary Islands this year. Mauritania's Red Crescent Society estimates that at least 1,000 migrants have drowned in the past four months alone on doomed sea journeys to Europe.