Spanish police recover bodies of two Moroccans on migrant boat

Spanish police have recovered the bodies of two Moroccans from a boat that reached Spain's coast after crossing the Mediterranean Sea with migrants and a hashish shipment.

Police said on Sunday that they found the bodies along with two other people who were suffering from hypothermia on Saturday after they were alerted that a rubber boat had reached a beach near Malaga. Police believe one of the dead could be a minor.

Police also found six kilograms of hashish near the boat. They suspect that the drugs belonged to boat's owner and the pilot, who police were looking for along with three others.

Police have located eight more Moroccan men from a total of 15 people they believe to have been on board.

Also on Sunday, Spain's maritime rescue service reported it had saved 179 people from seven boats its rescue craft intercepted either in the Strait of Gibraltar or nearby waters.

Earlier this week, at least 17 migrants died when attempting the perilous run from North Africa to Spanish shores.

According to the United Nations, over 2,160 people have died trying to cross the Mediterranean to Europe this year, 564 of them trying to reach Spain.

Spain is one of the main entry points for Europe for thousands of migrants, many of whom are delivered by human traffickers.

Nearly 54,000 migrants have entered Europe this year through Spain. One-fifth of them arrived in October, the month with most migrant arrivals so far this year, according to UN statistics.