According to the International Organization for Migration (OIM), 57,250 people managed to complete the journey to Spain across the Mediterranean between the beginning of the year and December 26. That is an average of nearly 160 arrivals a day, EL PAIS reported. Spain has become main gateway into Europe for irregular immigration from Africa, far surpassing Italy, Greece, Cyprus and Malta This number does not include the 300 migrants who arrived in Algeciras on December 28 aboard the Open Arms humanitarian ship. This year, the Open Arms and another rescue vessel named the Aquarius brought 452 and 630 migrants to Spain, respectively. The total for 2018 is much higher than the 39,180 arrivals registered in 2006, when there was a spike in the number of boats landing on Spanish coasts, most notably in the Canary Islands. At the time, the wave of arrivals was dubbed “the cayuco crisis,” after the makeshift vessels used by the migrants.
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