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Spain deployed the army to its North African enclave of Ceuta on Friday after about 60,000 people crossed from Morocco in a matter of days. That influx is larger than half the territory's population. Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez visited Ceuta and said the government would defend it as though it were the capital. The enclave's president reported at least 34 people died attempting the crossing by land and sea, and casualty figures stayed provisional through the weekend.
The crossings began Wednesday and swelled overnight into Thursday. Crowds breached the border fence near Tarajal beach, while others swam around the barriers. The head of the association representing Civil Guard officers in Ceuta told the Associated Press the border had "totally collapsed." Spanish forces and Moroccan security units, backed by water cannon, pushed back repeated attempts to cross. A burned bus and seven charred cars were left near the border after clashes.
Ceuta's regional leader, Juan Jesus Vivas, had asked Madrid to declare a state of emergency and send the army to the frontier. The Interior Ministry said it would reinforce security, but that Spanish law does not treat migration flows as a national security threat, so no emergency could be declared.
The surge quickly reached beyond Spain. France ordered tighter checks along its Spanish border and activated rapid intervention units for more intensive inspections. Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni threatened to suspend the Schengen open-border arrangement with Spain, and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen called the images unacceptable. Spain and Morocco agreed to return those who entered illegally as soon as possible.
Ceuta and Melilla are the European Union's only land borders with Africa, and both have long been flashpoints for irregular migration. Ceuta authorities linked the latest surge to a Spanish Supreme Court ruling this month that barred the immediate return of migrants intercepted at sea, though some rights groups doubt that explanation. The scale recalls May 2021, when more than 8,000 people entered Ceuta in two days during a diplomatic dispute between Madrid and Rabat. As of July 15, nearly 3,000 migrants had reached Ceuta this year, and Spain's next migration report is due August 3.
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