16.09.09 - 13:26 -
The Civil Guard has intercepted a boat carrying six children between the ages of 10 and 12 that was trying to reach the coast of southern Spain, emergency services officials told Efe.
The children, all boys, were found aboard the vessel early Tuesday some 1.6 miles south of Tarifa Island, close to the Strait of Gibraltar.
All the children were in good health, officials said.
The waters of the Atlantic and the Mediterranean Sea have been the scene of dangerous crossings in recent years by Africans, who often take to the sea in an effort to reach Spain and stay there or continue on to another European destination.
Boats carrying only children have become more common in recent years because minors reaching Spain are taken to special holding centres and not sent home.
