Spain urges Mauritania to allow 168 migrants rescued at sea to disembark

MADRID (AP) — Spanish media reports say about 170 migrants rescued in the Atlantic Ocean have been stuck for days aboard a Spanish Civil Guard boat near the African nation of Mauritania because authorities there refused to let them disembark. Leading Spanish newspaper El País says the Civil Guard rescued the migrants Thursday from a boat near the coast of Mauritania. Spain’s Interior Ministry declined to provide details but said it is confident the situation will be resolved soon. The migrants are believed to be Senegalese. Spanish security forces have long worked with local authorities in Mauritania and Senegal to try to prevent migrants from attempting to reach Spain’s Canary Islands.