NEARLY 150 refugees and migrants are feared dead or missing after a series of maritime disasters off the coast of Mauritania, the United Nations said.

The UN refugee agency (UNHCR) said 144 people were unaccounted for following three rescue and disembarkation operations conducted between July 14 and July 18. 

So far, 387 survivors have been rescued by local authorities.

The deadliest incident involved a boat that departed Bafuloto, The Gambia, bound for Spain. 

After drifting in the Atlantic for nearly 25 days, only 38 people survived, while 143 others were feared dead or missing. 

A separate rescue operation on July 14 also recorded one death, bringing the total number of people feared dead or missing to 144.

UNHCR said the Atlantic route to Spain’s Canary Islands remains among the world’s deadliest migration corridors because of the vast distances, unpredictable seas and overcrowded, unseaworthy boats.

Although arrivals in the Canary Islands had fallen 61 per cent compared with the same period in 2025, to around 4,400 as of July 15, the agency said fatalities and disappearances at sea remain alarmingly high, with many boats vanishing far from shore without survivors or witnesses.

Since the start of 2026, 17 rescue and disembarkation operations in Nouadhibou and Nouakchott have brought 2,147 people safely ashore.