A group of 136 African migrant people, covered with blankets, receive assitance from members of the emergency services after arriving at La Restinga port, aboard the Spanish Salvamento Maritimo (Sea Search and Rescue agency) vessel "Guardamar Caliope", following their rescue from a boat off the coast of the Canary island of El Hierro on August 26, 2024. Spain's left-wing government is grappling with a major upsurge in migrant arrivals, notably in the Canary Islands, which has left the Atlantic archipelago feeling increasingly abandoned by Madrid and Brussels. Not a day passes without Spain's coastguard rescuing at least one troubled boat carrying dozens of African migrants towards the islands which are located off the northwestern coast of Africa. The rising numbers have prompted Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez's latest diplomatic foray into West Africa where on August 27 he begins a three-day visit to the main countries concerned: Mauritania, The Gambia and Senegal. (Photo by Antonio Sempere / AFP)