On Thursday, shocking footage emerged from Ceuta when thousands of Moroccans swam the sea and arrived at the Spanish enclave in North America. Reuters reports that Spanish authorities have now deployed military units to reinforce police stations at Ceuta amid the migration.
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Migration from Morocco to the Spanish enclave along the Strait of Gibraltar is nothing new. Back in 2021, 10,000 crossed from Morocco and other African countries in 2021. Thursday’s migration is the biggest Ceuta has seen since.
Reuters reports that as a result of the influx, shops have been shut down in Ceuta, fearing potential riots. To control the crowd, the Spanish police have deployed additional 200 specialised police officers and 60 troops from the Spanish mainland to assist local law enforcement. So far, at least 60 have died trying to cross the border by sea.
Details
As of now, the Spanish authorities have not confirmed how many people moved from Morocco to Ceuta. Spanish television channel TVE reported between 2000 to 3000 people arrived, in what could be the biggest migration the Spanish territories have seen in recent times. Reuters, however, reported that they were not able to confirm the numbers. It added that some of the migrants were shouting “Long Live Spain” as they arrived.
Ceuta lies on the north coast of Africa. Though it is in North Africa, it is a Spanish territory and shares a land border with Morocco. Spain controls the territory across the Strait of Gibraltar.
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Videos and photos emerged from the coastal enclave of Ceuta on Thursday evening and into the night and thousands poured in. Reuters reports that many of them used inflatable rubber tubes to float across the Strait of Gibraltar to arrive at Ceuta. A video emerged showing a group of recently arrived migrants entering the city through the coastal areas.
Another video showed the group breaking open a gate guarding the land border with Morocco and entering the city of Ceuta.
Spain’s Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez will travel to Ceuta on Friday with Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska, his office announced. There will be talks with local law enforcement regarding security arrangements. As of now, no statements have come from the Moroccan side.
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According to Reuters, the influx may have been triggered by a recent Supreme Court ruling in Spain. The enclaves maintain a special “border rejection” regime under which migrants can be immediately returned to their countries by Spanish authorities.
But Spain’s Supreme Court ruled last month that migrants into Ceuta and Melilla – the other North African enclave- cannot be summarily returned under the special provision. Spain’s Socialist government also supported the ruling, arguing it was being exploited by “mafias and criminal organizations.”
Additionally, Spain’s government has recently started a program to provide legal status for some 500,000 undocumented migrants, drawing criticism from the right-wing opposition in the country.
With inputs from Reuters.
