Spain rescues 262 migrants in Canary Islands as EU mulls migration

Spanish coast guards rescued 262 migrants in three boats trying to reach the Canary Islands in the early hours on Friday amid a surge in crossings, just as European leaders were meeting in Spain to look for ways to avoid a new migration crisis.
Italy and Spain have voiced concern over an increase in irregular immigration this year to their islands in the Mediterranean or in the Atlantic. Madrid has said it cannot cope with irregular immigration without help from the European Union.
Emergency services said they had brought 103 of the 262 rescued migrants to El Hierro, the westernmost and tiniest of the Canary Islands, which has received more than 1,200 migrants in the last six days alone.
The head of the Canary Islands’ regional government, Fernando Clavijo, said on Thursday, the health service of El Hierro, which has just 11,000 residents, gets overwhelmed every time a boat arrives at the port.
The other rescued migrants were taken to Los Cristianos port in Tenerife and Arguineguin in Gran Canaria.
The emergency services said, the migrants were from sub-Saharan Africa.