Ceuta sees nearly 49,000 migrants in one day; Spain deploys army
Almost 49,000 migrants have arrived in the Spanish enclave of Ceuta in North Africa within 24 hours, nearly half the city's population. Authorities have sent the army to restore control after border checks broke down.
Nearly 49,000 migrants have arrived in Ceuta, a Spanish enclave on the North African coast opposite Gibraltar, from Morocco by land and sea over the past day, according to the BBC. Videos and photos show thousands of people swimming into the city on July 30, and local media reported the influx continued through the night into Friday, July 31.
The mass movement began after Spain's Supreme Court ruled in July that migrants detained at sea en route to Ceuta or the other Spanish enclave, Melilla, could not be immediately returned to Morocco. After a recent rise in border-crossing attempts, local authorities asked Madrid for help. On July 30 the situation descended into chaos and border control broke down.
Spain then sent the army to Ceuta to help maintain order, and also in Melilla, where 300–400 overnight attempts to cross the border were reported. According to official estimates, the number of migrants who arrived in the last day is nearly half Ceuta's population, which stands at about 83,600 people. Around 7,000 of those who crossed the border in the last 24 hours are minors.
Spain's Interior Ministry said it is working with Morocco to return all those who illegally entered Spanish territory to their countries of origin as quickly as possible. If the estimates are correct, this would be the largest number of migrants since May 2021, when more than 10,000 people crossed into Ceuta. Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez is expected to visit the city on July 31.
