Ceuta faces migration crisis as thousands cross uncontrolled from Morocco

Thousands of migrants entered Ceuta from Morocco on Thursday, overwhelming police and emergency services after swimming around the breakwater at the Tarajal border and entering on foot.

Spain’s state broadcaster said up to 3,000 people had crossed, with some Ceuta residents drawing parallels with a similar situation in 2021 when 10,000 Moroccan and sub-Saharan migrants entered the Spanish enclave in just days.

Authorities in Ceuta asked the Spanish government to declare a national emergency, requesting urgent intervention and the deployment of police and soldiers at the border.

Juan Jesus Vivas, the president of the autonomous city, had warned earlier in the week that Ceuta’s migrant reception centres were already at full capacity and that hundreds of people were sleeping on the streets.

“Yesterday I warned of the extreme gravity of the migration crisis,” he wrote on social media.

“Today the situation is even worse: more arrivals, overwhelmed resources, and another life lost at sea.”

“Ceuta needs an immediate, coordinated intervention with all the necessary means.”

“Ceuta needs more resources, infrastructure, coordination, and objective limits to its capacity to welcome people.”

“We are not asking for privileges, but for a fair, responsible response that is in line with our status as Europe's border in Africa.”

The developments come after Spain’s Supreme Court ruled earlier this month that migrants intercepted trying to enter Ceuta by sea could not be immediately returned to Morocco under special fast-track rules that apply to the Spanish enclave’s land border.

The numbers of people entering by sea since that ruling had increased steadily but surged on Thursday at around midday.

Many of those arriving had sustained injuries from the rocky shoreline and authorities in Ceuta were faced with an immediate humanitarian cris that left emergency services overstretched.

Spain’s Ministry of the Interior said it was working closely with Morocco to tackle the rise in migrant numbers, which both countries attributed to people trafficking gangs exploiting the court ruling.

Interior Minister Fernando Grande Marlaska is due to visit Ceuta on Friday.

But there were claims too that Morocco had eased controls around the Ceuta border angered by a recent visit by Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez to Algeria.

Spain’s Ministry for Foreign Affairs rejected those claims and insisted Spain and Morocco maintained excellent relations and were working together to address the crisis.

“The Government of Spain is fully committed to providing an immediate response to the situation in Ceuta,” Mr Sanchez wrote on X.

“We are mobilising all necessary resources, working with Moroccan and international authorities, and preparing the necessary measures to restore normalcy as soon as possible.”

“This is the moment to build solutions, with responsibility and cooperation.”