Ceuta on Edge and Trying to Recover After Deadly Mass Migrant Crossings

Africa News

Migrants, some of them unaccompanied minors, who crossed from Morocco into Spain, write down their contact information to give to a neighborhood association.  

Although calm is gradually returning to the Ceuta border, many local residents still feel anxious amid ongoing fears about illegal migration. Spain's government said around 2,000 undocumented migrants remain in Ceuta, while local authorities estimate the number could be as high as 3,000 to 5,000.

On Tuesday, Spanish Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska said that around 70,000 of the roughly 72,000 migrants who crossed into Spain's North African enclave of Ceuta from Morocco last week have since returned to Morocco.

In response to the border crisis, Spain has installed a 500-meter-long pneumatic barrier in the waters between Ceuta and Morocco. The barrier stands 30 to 70 centimeters above water and extends about a meter below, aiming to create a physical boundary at sea for law enforcement to better manage the situation.

According to Spain's Guardia Civil officers stationed at one of the main border gates, many of the migrants who entered Ceuta illegally in recent days have largely returned to Morocco through this gate, and the area has now returned to relative calm.

Among those who recently crossed is 23-year-old Abdul Karim, who, along with friends, swam for over three hours from Morocco last weekend before reaching Ceuta. For now, he is sheltering in a temporary city center facility, waiting to learn what comes next.

"We want to go to mainland Spain to work. It's hard to find jobs in Morocco, so we hope to find work in Spain. Swimming here was very difficult. At one point, I thought I was going to drown. Some people just disappeared while trying to swim across," he said.

In the center of Ceuta, some shops have reopened for business, but many storefronts remain shuttered and police patrols are still a common sight. For this city, which relies heavily on cross-border trade, port logistics, and tourism, the impact of the migrant crisis is likely to linger for some time to come.

Ceuta, located on the Mediterranean coast of northwestern Africa near the Strait of Gibraltar, borders Morocco. The recent surge of illegal crossings from the Moroccan side has triggered the most severe border migration crisis Spain has faced in recent years.