A boat carrying illegal migrants in international waters south of Lampedusa, in the Mediterranean Sea, August 13, 2024. (Photo: REUTERS)

The boat arrived at a beach near the town of Vila do Bispo in Portugal’s Algarve province. The migrants were in a debilitated state and in need of medical care, showing signs of dehydration and hypothermia. Ten migrants were taken to hospital for medical observation.

Officials did not release information about the nationalities of the boat’s passengers or its departure point, but a public broadcaster reported that the vessel left Morocco and spent six days at sea before reaching Portugal.

Hundreds of thousands of migrants have crossed the Mediterranean Sea to southern Europe in recent years but they have not typically headed to Portugal, on Europe’s southwest Atlantic coast.