On the 1st of March 2026, Alarm Phone was contacted by a relative about a boat which was missing since the 26th of February. 29 people with different nationalities had left Algiers trying to reach Palma de Mallorca. Among the people on board were two babies.
Alarm Phone alerted authorities and tried to reach the group, without success.
On the 12th of March we were contacted by one of the people who had been travelling on the boat. He was in Assamaka, Niger. He reported that he was one of 18 survivors of a shipwreck provoked by the Algerian Naval Forces.
The shipwreck was caused by the Algerian navy. They came to intercept us, so our captain stopped. They stayed at a distance, then our captain set off again. At that point, they set off behind us at high speed. The speed of their boat caused huge waves, which capsized our vessel. After the shipwreck, they stood by for 10 to 15 minutes without intervening. It was already getting a bit dark, and that is what led to the loss of life. There were 27 of us on board, plus two babies. In total, 18 people were rescued.
The bodies of the adults were not recovered. Another vessel approached, appearing to intend supporting the rescue, which caused the Algerian coastguard to rapidly leave the scene of the shipwreck. According to the witness:
…when the Algerians saw them, they quickly fled, no doubt to avoid being filmed.
After this traumatizing experience, the survivors were deteined.
When they took us to the port, we were due to appear in court. Their leader came to ask us what had happened, and we explained to him that it was the coastguard who had caused the shipwreck. In the end, they didn’t take us to court, probably because they already knew what had happened. They took us straight to a detention centre, where we stayed for about four days. While we were there, they also arrested other people in the neighbourhood. After that, they transferred us to Assamaka, where everyone went their separate ways.
Almost daily, many people try to reach the Balearic Islands or eastern shores of Spain from different beaches in Algeria. Many Algerians take this route, but also people from Mali, Somalia, Guinea, Cameroon, Ivory Coast etc, embark on long and dangerous journeys.
Many of them do not make it.
Interceptions to Algeria can result in prison sentences. For people who are not Algerian, deportations to the desert in the border region between Algeria and Niger are commonplace.
Many people remain missing after invisible shipwrecks. Sometimes, the sea reveals the truth by returning the bodies of some of those that lose their lives at sea to Algerian beaches. Fishermen witness this tragedy. There’s not institutional will to identify and repatriate these bodies and allow the grieving families to come to terms with their loss.
Despite the danger, people continue to move. Border policies kill many people every day by not allowing them safer passages to wherever they want to travel. We won’t stop until freedom of movement is a right for everybody.
