Moroccan police arrested at least 111 people on Saturday (August 15, 2026) as they tried to enter Spain’s North African enclave of Ceuta, amid tightened security on both sides of the border after social media posts called for another mass migrant crossing.
Local media reported similar measures near Spain’s other North African enclave, Melilla. In Ceuta, Spanish soldiers guarded supermarkets while police heavily patrolled the enclave’s main streets. A Reuters witness saw reinforced security near the border, including police vans with wire shields and road checkpoints.
A source in Morocco’s Interior Ministry told Reuters those detained included 109 migrants from sub-Saharan Africa and two Moroccan citizens arrested in or around Fnideq, the Moroccan city opposite Ceuta. Moroccan police used tear gas to disperse groups of migrants gathered on hills about 3 km (1.9 miles) from the border. Reuters later saw hundreds of police officers, some in riot gear and others in plain clothes, returning from the hills outside Fnideq, according to Spanish news agency EFE. The city was calmer than in the days after the deadly crossing attempt on July 30. Madrid has since installed a maritime barrier and deployed more than 500 additional police from mainland Spain, raising the total in Ceuta to more than 1,600. The warning was echoed by Adil Jamil, 17.
The Interior Ministry said the reinforcements would remain for as long as needed. Earlier this week, Rabat said it was monitoring “the circulation of social media posts and messages of unknown origin” calling for a mass crossing on August 15, warning it would prosecute organisers and participants.
