Moroccan Navy Patrol Confronts Spanish Fishing Boats in Disputed Waters Near Tarifa

Roberto Gonzalez, accompanied by two friends, went out to sea on Saturday for a day of fishing when a patrol boat from the Royal Moroccan Navy "entered Spanish waters" and began chasing them, ordering them to leave Moroccan waters. However, Gonzalez claims without a doubt that he was "less than a mile from the coast of Tarifa" and was confirmed by Tarifa Trafico, a maritime control center, that he was "in Spanish waters" and not Moroccan, reports El Confidencial.

Gonzalez and his friends informed the Moroccan agents that they did not understand what they were asking for. It was then that the Moroccan patrol boat accelerated to reach the level of the Spanish vessel and the agents asked to know the number of people on board the boat. Gonzalez indicates the figure 3 with his fingers and the patrol boat moves away from them to head towards another Spanish boat.

Antonio Calafat, another Spanish fisherman, experienced the same situation. He says he was "harassed" by the Moroccan patrol boat while navigating in Spanish waters, with the "Spanish flag hoisted". "They informed us that we were in an area under Moroccan sovereignty and that we had to leave," explains Antonio, specifying that the Moroccan agents had a "threatening" tone and were carrying weapons.

"What they want is money. You give them 300 euros and they leave you alone," says the Spanish fisherman. But before leaving the area, he checked his coordinates and confirmed that the Moroccan patrol boat "had entered Spanish waters". The two fishermen say that a third boat was also chased by the Moroccan patrol boat and asked to leave the area. "It’s very serious and it’s not the first time it’s happened," laments Gonzalez.