Spain and Morocco halt mass crossing that saw tens of thousands enter Ceuta
Morocco and Spain reinforced the border fence surrounding the Spanish enclave of Ceuta on Friday, apparently halting a mass crossing wave that saw nearly 49,000 people enter by land and sea in a single day, resulting in the drowning of at least 19 people.
The mass crossing wave to Ceuta, a Spanish territory on the Mediterranean coast of northern Morocco, sparked division in Europe, with Italy threatening to suspend the EU’s plan to open internal borders.
At the entrances to Ceuta, Moroccan authorities deployed trucks equipped with water cannons and dispersed crowds. A bus and seven cars were seen burning nearby following clashes with the crowds.
Spanish authorities stated they would seek to deport those who entered illegally as quickly as possible, despite a court ruling that imposed new restrictions on the rules for “refusal of entry at the border,” which allow for immediate deportation.
Ceuta, along with Melilla, another autonomous Spanish city in northern Morocco, constitutes the EU’s only land border with Africa. The two cities have a combined population of approximately 85,000.
Both cities periodically experience waves of migration attempts by people seeking to reach Europe, but the crossing of nearly 50,000 people in a single day appears to be an unprecedented event.
Spain described the crisis as the largest since at least 2021.
Spanish Minister of Regional Policy Ángel Víctor Torres said on Friday that one of the factors contributing to the surge in arrivals was a decision issued earlier this month by Spain’s Supreme Court, which ruled against the immediate return of migrants intercepted at sea while attempting to reach Ceuta or Melilla.
Torris told a local radio station that the Spanish government had moved immediately to address the crossing wave and would ultimately repatriate migrants while respecting court rulings and migrants’ rights.
On the Moroccan side of the border, thousands of migrants flooded into the town of Fnideq overnight, despite enhanced security deployments that thwarted most crossing attempts.
Although the crossing point appeared to be closed, groups of migrants continued to move along the coast in search of ways to bypass the fence, with some preparing to swim to cross.
Among those attempting to cross were women and children from Morocco and sub-Saharan African countries.
The United Association of the Spanish Civil Guard stated in a post on the X platform that the number of police officers present at the fence during the crossing wave on Thursday was low.
The migrant influx recalls the 2021 crisis, when more than 10,000 migrants arrived in Ceuta from Morocco within two days, taking advantage of relaxed border controls by Rabat during a diplomatic crisis between the two countries.
The Polisario fighters have waged a long war with Morocco for the independence of the Western Sahara region.
However, the two countries moved past this crisis when Spain announced in 2022 its support for Morocco’s autonomy proposal as the sole solution to end the Western Sahara dispute, a move that angered Algeria, a supporter of the Polisario.
Sanchez visited Algeria on July 20, the first visit by a Spanish prime minister in four years, cementing improved relations after years of tension.
French Interior Minister Laurent Nunez announced on Friday that France would tighten its border controls with Spain following the influx of thousands of irregular migrants into the border enclave of Ceuta with Morocco in recent days.
Núñez wrote on the X platform, “In light of the situation observed in the enclave of Ceuta, I issued instructions yesterday evening (Thursday) to strengthen border inspection operations along the Spanish border without delay,” adding that the rapid border intervention force had been activated to carry out “in-depth inspections.”
In remarks to RTL radio, he said, “We are conducting inspections at the French-Spanish border, which is already in place and has been reinforced in recent months.”
