Sánchez agrees to convene urgent immigration commission on El Hierro on 10 November

A call from Clavijo and a commitment from Sánchez

On Saturday, 7 November, Canary Islands president Fernando Clavijo spoke with Pedro Sánchez, head of the Spanish government, and told him about the "gravity" of the situation on El Hierro. According to the regional government and Clavijo's post on his official X account, he cited migratory pressure and growing unrest among residents. He said the archipelago has been asking the central state for months for more resources, planning and a coordinated response. Clavijo reported that Sánchez committed to urgently convening the Comisión Interministerial de Inmigración at Moncloa on Tuesday, 10 November, and to reinforcing health resources through the Secretaría de Estado de Migraciones. Clavijo also asked for urgent meetings with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and EU commissioner for internal affairs and migration Magnus Brunner.

Who sits at the table

The Ministry of Territorial Policy and Democratic Memory has confirmed the session for Tuesday, 10 November, before the Council of Ministers, with migration to the Canaries and the situation on El Hierro on the agenda. Ángel Víctor Torres, the minister of Territorial Policy and Democratic Memory, will chair it. Clavijo and Alpidio Armas, president of the Cabildo de El Hierro, will attend in an extraordinary capacity, alongside several other ministers. Clavijo wants the meeting to produce a joint plan with concrete measures and deadlines, and he warned:

“We cannot keep acting only when the situation gets worse.”

Torres posted on X that the session will bring the administrations together to review what has been done and what more must be implemented jointly.

“On Tuesday at La Moncloa, representatives of all administrations will analyse the measures taken so far and those that need to be implemented jointly.”

Arrivals strain services on El Hierro

Counts differ by outlet and by the period each one measures. LaSexta reports 743 people reached the archipelago from midnight on 7 November, with 600 landing on El Hierro from six cayucos and 143 rescued about 50 miles off Lanzarote. El Mundo puts arrivals on El Hierro at more than 3,000 people in the five days to 7 November, aboard around thirty cayucos. Eldiario.es counts more than 2,300 people rescued near El Hierro in the week to 7 November. El País, citing Salvamento Marítimo, reports three boats carrying about 255 migrants that day, and says arrivals by sea to the islands in November are approaching 4,000.

Emergency declaration and central-state responses

The Cabildo de El Hierro has declared a social emergency to manage the migration situation. Its decree asks the Canary and central governments for more staff and rotations so that teams from Salvamento Marítimo, the Canary health service, security forces, Red Cross and other NGOs can rest. Armas said the island cannot move everyone who arrives to Tenerife as fast as they land, and that the central government told him it has opened two centres in Tenerife and will open another in Gran Canaria soon. A storm named Bruna was expected in the coming hours, which El País reported could make conditions at sea much harder. Armas said:

“We are very worried.”

Forensic support on the island

The Instituto de Medicina Legal y Ciencias Forenses of Santa Cruz de Tenerife province has activated a special support device for El Hierro's forensic service. The measure is preventive, in case people die on boats over the weekend, and professionals could travel from Tenerife if needed. The regional presidency department said it had bought a refrigerated chamber holding six bodies and procured a container for the state assistance device run by the Red Cross, which it did at the NGO's request even though it is not a regional competence. The chamber has been operating since November 2024.