The illegal migrants were intercepted Friday morning by a coastguard vessel of the gendarmerie off the Mauritanian coast after leaving Banjul six days ago.

All the returnees left Nouakchott, except one 24-year-old young man suffering from acute diarrhoea.

For the past few years, Mauritania has been the first target of thousands of sub-Saharan as they attempt to reach Spain or other countries in Europe.