Morocco arrests 111 migrants in Ceuta border crackdown after deadly surge
Moroccan authorities arrested at least 111 people on Saturday as they attempted to enter Spain's North African enclave of Ceuta, two weeks after a massive migrant surge that left nearly 100 dead. The arrests come amid heightened security on both sides of the border following social media calls for another mass crossing.
A source in Morocco's Interior Ministry told Reuters that those detained included 109 migrants from sub-Saharan Africa and two Moroccan citizens, apprehended in or near Fnideq, the Moroccan town opposite Ceuta.
According to Spanish news agency EFE, Moroccan police used tear gas to disperse groups of migrants gathered on hills approximately 3 km from the border. Reuters witnessed hundreds of police officers, some in riot gear, returning from the hills outside Fnideq. EFE and Spanish state broadcaster TVE reported that Morocco's Interior Ministry ordered their journalists to leave Fnideq immediately, without providing a reason.
In Ceuta, Spanish soldiers guarded supermarkets while police patrolled main streets. The city was calmer than in the days following the July 30 crossing attempt, which saw over 72,000 migrants surge into the enclave and sparked tensions within the European Union. At least 96 people died during that attempt.
In response, Madrid has installed a maritime barrier and deployed more than 500 additional police officers from mainland Spain, raising the total contingent in Ceuta to over 1,600. Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska said reinforcements would remain as long as necessary. "We'll continue to deploy whatever personnel are necessary to restore normality as soon as possible and prevent events like those of July 30 from happening again," he said on Thursday.
Around 5,000 migrants remain in Ceuta, the minister said. Reuters saw hundreds sheltering from heat under makeshift bamboo structures on the urban beach of El Trampolin. Grande-Marlaska stated that migrants who entered irregularly would not be allowed to stay in the enclave, travel to mainland Spain, or obtain legal status, except in rare cases of extreme vulnerability. Those without right to remain would be returned to Morocco.
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, and warned it would prosecute organisers and participants.
A Reuters witness saw reinforced security near the border, including police vans with wire shields and road checkpoints. Local media reported similar measures near Spain's other enclave, Melilla. Authorities prevented several groups from boarding trains and buses to northern Morocco in cities like Casablanca, Fez and Kenitra. However, witnesses said some migrants from sub-Saharan Africa were bypassing checkpoints by taking mountain routes towards Fnideq.
One witness said schools in Fnideq had been converted into accommodation for security forces deployed near the border.
Many of the young people who entered Ceuta on July 30 were seen fishing, swimming or washing at Tarajal beach on Friday. Driss Sadik, a 22-year-old from Fez who said he swam for five hours to reach Ceuta, urged others not to follow his example. "The important thing I would advise people trying to cross: Don't cross now, my brothers. You're only going to suffer," he told Reuters.
Adil Jamil, 17, echoed the warning: "Those who enter aren't going to benefit from anything. There will just be more and more of us, and they won't find a solution for all." Jamil described the mass crossings as people choosing a date, gathering in Fnideq and crossing together for strength in numbers.
