Ceuta Reinforces Defenses as Morocco Cracks Down on Border-Rush Incitement
Security has been significantly tightened on both sides of the border separating Spain's North African enclave of Ceuta from Morocco, following social media calls for a repeat of t…
Security has been significantly tightened on both sides
Security has been significantly tightened on both sides of the border separating Spain's North African enclave of Ceuta from Morocco, following social media calls for a repeat of the mass border crossing that overwhelmed the city over the summer. The reinforced measures come as authorities in Madrid and Rabat move to prevent a second wave of illegal entries.
On Friday, Spanish soldiers were deployed to guard commercial and government buildings in Ceuta, while a visibly larger police presence patrolled the city's main thoroughfares. On the Moroccan side, security forces clad in black uniforms took up positions along the beaches of Fnideq, a key departure point for the thousands of migrants who stormed into Ceuta on July 30.
The heightened vigilance was prompted by online messages urging Moroccans to attempt another mass entry into Ceuta and Spain's other enclave, Melilla, over the weekend. Morocco's Interior Ministry condemned the posts, describing them as criminal incitement that endangers lives and seeks to exploit migration for disruptive purposes.
In a statement carried by the state-run news
In a statement carried by the state-run news agency MAP, the ministry noted that several individuals had already been arrested for spreading the inflammatory content. Interior Ministry spokesperson Rachid El Khalfi confirmed the arrests and called on Spain to expedite the return of Moroccan migrants still residing in Ceuta.
According to officials, the vast majority of the more than 72,000 people who participated in the July rush have been sent back to Morocco. However, around 5,000 remain in Ceuta, where Spanish authorities have been processing their cases. Spain's Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska told reporters on Friday that roughly 500 asylum requests had been reviewed, with most being rejected.
To further deter future crossings, Spain has installed floating barriers in the waters near the border, where many migrants attempted to swim across. The July incident resulted in at least 96 deaths, raising concerns about the humanitarian impact of such mass movements. Both Spanish and Moroccan governments have yet to respond to requests for additional comment.