King of Spain calls for protection of Ceuta and prevention of recurrence of bloody migration crisis

Spanish King Felipe VI expressed his deep concern and dismay over the migration crisis that unfolded in Ceuta, calling for all necessary measures to ensure the city’s security and prevent a recurrence of the tragic events that claimed dozens of lives. The royal palace said in a statement that the king held talks over the past few days with Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez, opposition leader Alberto Núñez Feijóo, and the heads of government of Ceuta and Melilla, the two Spanish cities under the Spanish crown. The statement clarified that the Spanish monarch stressed the need to unify efforts to demonstrate the state’s support for the residents of the two cities, emphasizing that “the state must ensure their security and prevent the recurrence of these events, which have resulted in the sad and tragic loss of dozens of lives.” Interior ministers of European Union member states are scheduled to hold an urgent and extraordinary meeting via video conference next Tuesday to discuss the migration crisis in Ceuta and ways to handle future crises, as well as to coordinate a joint European response to protect the EU’s external borders, in response to a request by Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez and leaders of 22 other countries. Earlier on Saturday, Sánchez criticized in a letter to European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen the positions and reactions of some European governments, which he said had handled the crisis with “prejudice, misleading information, ignorance, and political interests,” in contradiction with European law, international humanitarian law, and the principles of European solidarity. Ceuta and Melilla are two Spanish autonomous cities on Morocco’s northern coast and constitute the EU’s only land border with the African continent, making them among the most prominent crossing points for migrants seeking to reach Europe.