CEUTA, Spain: The Ceuta migrant crisis left at least 34 people dead after about 50,000 entered from Morocco, while half had returned by July 31, Spanish authorities said.
Police sources told EFE that emergency teams recovered 34 bodies along Ceuta’s coast. The search continued because thousands had attempted to reach the Spanish enclave by sea.
Spain’s Interior Ministry estimated that about 25,000 people had returned to Morocco by Friday. Large groups walked towards the Tarajal crossing as overcrowding strained local services.
Ceuta President Juan Jesús Visas estimated that 60,000 people crossed within 24 hours. However, Spain’s Interior Ministry had not confirmed that higher figure, the Associated Press reported.
Spain deployed 200 specialised police officers and 60 troops to support the Civil Guard. Reception facilities exceeded capacity, leaving thousands of adults and unaccompanied children sleeping in streets and parks.
Read: Spain Migrant Regularisation Draws 1.17m Applicants
Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez of Spain visited the Tarajal border at 11:40 am local time. He later attended a coordination meeting with Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska and local officials.
Sánchez described the mass crossing as a violation of Spain’s territorial integrity. He accused human-smuggling networks of exploiting a recent Supreme Court ruling that restricted immediate returns of people intercepted at sea.
Read: Sweden Migration Laws Tighten as New Rules Take Effect
The crisis also triggered a diplomatic dispute with Italy. Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni proposed suspending Schengen arrangements with Spain, prompting Madrid to summon the Italian ambassador.
