On Friday, Spain requested assistance from the European Border and Coast Guard Agency (Frontex) in processing migrants’ documents in the North African enclave of Ceuta, nearly a month after tens of thousands of people poured across the border from Morocco, UNN reports, citing Reuters.
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Spanish Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska sent a request to Beate Gminder, Director-General for Migration and Home Affairs at the European Commission, asking for assistance from Frontex, the European Union agency, in screening migrants who are illegally staying in the enclave.
Authorities say that between 5,000 and 8,000 people remain in Ceuta after at least 72,000 people crossed the border from Morocco on July 30 in a mass border crossing that resulted in the deaths of 82 migrants on the Spanish side of the border, with 14 more deaths confirmed by Morocco.
Spain also asked Frontex for 10 additional staff members to help screen migrants.
Marlaska’s request came amid growing tensions in Ceuta following a series of protests by residents demanding that the migrants leave.
The tents used by migrants on Tramolin Beach, where many of them had set up camp, were attacked and set on fire.
Twelve migrants who threw stones at an army vehicle, injuring one soldier and four migrants, were arrested on Thursday. Eleven people were expelled from Ceuta, the El Pais newspaper reported on Friday, citing sources at the city’s main court.