At least 144 people have died or gone missing in three maritime incidents off Mauritania between July 14 and 18 while attempting to reach Europe from West Africa, the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) reported on Tuesday.
The deadliest incident involved a boat that departed from The Gambia and spent nearly 25 days stranded in the Atlantic Ocean before being rescued off Mauritania. Of the passengers on board, 143 were reported dead or missing, while only 38 were rescued, including two children who lost all their family members during the journey.
The survivors were among 387 people brought ashore during three rescue and disembarkation operations in Nouadhibou, Mauritania, between July 14 and 18, where UNHCR and humanitarian partners assisted.
“The UN Refugee Agency is extremely saddened and concerned at reports that 144 people are either dead or missing as a result of tragic maritime incidents off the coast of Mauritania last week,” UNHCR said in a statement.
The incidents, the UN agency said, highlight the dangers facing refugees and migrants attempting the Atlantic crossing to the Canary Islands.
“The Atlantic route from West Africa towards the Canary Islands remains one of the world's deadliest mixed movement corridors,” UNHCR said, citing long distances, unpredictable ocean conditions, unseaworthy, overcrowded boats and limited access to timely rescue.
The incidents add to a pattern of deadly journeys along the Atlantic route, which has remained one of the most dangerous pathways for refugees and migrants attempting to reach Europe. According to the UN Refugee Agency, although arrivals to the Spanish Canary Islands have declined this year, deaths and disappearances at sea continue at alarming levels.
As of July 15, 4,400 people had arrived in the Canary Islands by sea, a 61 per cent decline from the same period in 2025. Across Europe’s main sea routes, more than 40,000 arrivals have been recorded this year, compared with 65,407 in the first half of 2025, while many deaths at sea go unrecorded because entire boats sometimes disappear during the crossing.
“The rescues in Mauritania demonstrate that concerted efforts need to be made to address the root causes driving refugees and migrants to take these perilous journeys, while providing meaningful and quicker access to legal pathways through higher resettlement quotas, increased labour opportunities and education pathways as alternatives to the dangerous sea crossings,” the agency said.
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