Spain’s North African enclave of Ceuta is experiencing a humanitarian and security emergency after 1,500 migrants reached the city by swimming across from Morocco over the past week, the territory’s leader said on Thursday.
Ceuta, together with Melilla – another Spanish autonomous city located in North Africa – represents the European Union’s only land border with Africa. Both cities periodically experience surges in attempted crossings by migrants seeking to reach Europe.
Spain’s Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska will travel to Ceuta on Friday, July 31, to meet local authorities and security chiefs, as the Spanish government said it was coordinating across multiple ministries to strengthen border control and provide humanitarian assistance.
Arrivals were currently averaging about 300 people a day, according to regional leader Juan Jesús Vivas. At that pace, he warned, Ceuta could face a situation comparable to the May 2021 migration crisis, when 10,000 people entered the enclave in mere days.
Source: Reuters
