MIAMI, United States. — The United States Coast Guard today deported 50 Cuban rafters who had been detained in different operations in the Florida Straits.
As reported by that federal entity on Twitter, the migrants were taken to the port of Cabañas, on the north coast of the province of Artemisa, by the crew of the Kathleen Moore coast guard.
“The United States Coast Guard repatriated 50 Cubans to Cabañas, Cuba, after three interdictions off the coast of Florida,” the information said.
“Going to sea in unsafe and unseaworthy vessels can make you lose your life,” authorities from that body warned.
The Coast Guard – the smallest branch of the six that make up the United States Armed Forces – has remained active in recent weeks, increasing migrant repatriation operations.
The migratory wave through the Florida Straits has forced the US authorities to increase patrols in the area in coordination with authorities from countries such as the Bahamas.
The state of Florida also mobilized the National Guard to support the rescue efforts of migrants, most of them stranded on keys and islets far from the mainland.
From October 2022 to mid-January 2023, US Coast Guard crews had intercepted 5,183 Cuban raftersa figure close to that registered during the previous fiscal year, when 6,182 were arrested.
On the morning of January 24, a boat carrying some 28 irregular migrants sank in waters north of the Matanzas province. So far, the deaths of five people have been confirmed, while another 12 remain missing.
