Spain and Morocco strengthen the border amid fears of a new wave of migrants in Ceuta
Kyiv • UNN
Spain and Morocco have stepped up security along the Ceuta border following calls on social media for a new mass migrant breakthrough on August 15. An additional 300 police officers and 2,000 military personnel have been sent to the enclave.
Thousands of Spanish and Moroccan security personnel strengthened security along the borders of Ceuta on Friday amid the spread online of messages calling for a new mass breach into the North African enclave. Politico reports, UNN writes.
Details
Following the unprecedented arrival of 72,000 migrants in the Spanish city last month, messages began circulating on social media proposing a similar mass breach on Saturday, August 15 — Spain’s national holiday. The authorities in Madrid and Rabat are monitoring online activity and coordinating a joint response.
Morocco’s Interior Ministry spokesperson, Rachid El-Khalfi, confirmed on Wednesday that the country was "taking all necessary measures to counter any attempt to cross the border illegally," while local journalists reported on Friday that the military presence around the border town of Fnideq had been significantly reinforced.
Spain’s Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska arrived in Ceuta on Thursday to inspect the condition of the border infrastructure and the new sea barrier designed to prevent people from attempting to swim to the city. The enclave’s security forces were also reinforced with an additional 300 police officers and 2,000 military personnel.
We are doing this to deter anyone seeking to enter Ceuta and Melilla illegally. None of them will remain in Ceuta, none will reach the Iberian Peninsula, and none will obtain legal status
The expected mass breach became one of the arguments cited by critics of Spain’s migration policy.
Last week, Austria’s Minister for European Affairs, Integration and Family, Claudia Bauer, mentioned the expected influx on August 15 in a written statement, urging Madrid to "immediately and substantially strengthen security along the borders of its African enclaves and, this time, ensure that it is properly enforced."
The government of Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni also referred last week to the possibility of a mass arrival of migrants in mid-August, using it to justify its decision to maintain border controls for travelers from Spain.