Three migrants arrived in Spain on tanker rudder seek asylum

FILE PHOTO: Chemical tanker Alithini II is docked at Las Palmas de Gran Canaria port, after three migrants stowed away on the rudder of the ship were rescued by Spanish coast guard on Monday, on the island of Gran Canaria, Spain, November 29, 2022. REUTERS/Borja Suarez

Three migrants who arrived to the Canary Islands from Nigeria after enduring 11 days on a tanker rudder have asked for asylum in Spain, local authorities said on Wednesday.

The three Nigerian men were hospitalized upon reaching the port of Las Palmas on Gran Canaria on Monday night, where they were spotted by coastguards.

Two of the three had been returned to the vessel for deportation on Tuesday but on Wednesday a local spokesperson for the Spanish government said all three had asked for asylum.

FILE PHOTO: Chemical tanker Alithini II is docked at Las Palmas de Gran Canaria port, after three migrants stowed away on the rudder of the ship were rescued by Spanish coast guard on Monday, on the island of Gran Canaria, Spain, November 29, 2022. REUTERS/Borja Suarez/File Photo

(Reporting by Inti Landauro and Emma Pinedo; Editing by Frank Jack Daniel)