The European Union has come down on Spain’s side over Ceuta, praising the speed of Madrid’s response after the bloc’s interior ministers met on Tuesday.
Spanish Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska put the number of migrants who crossed into the North African territory between 30 and 31 July at around 72,000. Roughly 70,000 have since been sent back to Morocco. At least 75 people died on the Spanish side of the border, with a further 11 deaths recorded in Morocco.
Why the meeting was called
Tuesday’s session was convened because several member states had questioned how Spain was handling the situation. Italy called the images coming out of Ceuta shocking and suspended its Schengen arrangement with Spain.
Irish Justice Minister Jim O’Callaghan, who chaired the meeting, said the EU stood with Spain and that migration needed a united European response.
Tension had been expected in the room. Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni had said on Thursday that uncontrolled immigration of this kind posed a security threat to Europe, and Rome suspended its free movement agreement with Spain the following day. Since the two countries share no land border, the practical effect is limited to air travel, amounting to additional checks on passengers. Schengen removes internal border checks across 29 countries and more than 450 million people.
Finland and Denmark supported the Italian move. Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babiš went further and called for Spain’s Schengen membership to be suspended temporarily. Italy, Denmark and 20 other countries later co-signed a letter setting out their concerns.
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez pushed back, saying he had serious concerns of his own about some European governments and noting that Ceuta sits outside the Schengen area. Most had offered support, he said, while others had chosen to attack Spain out of prejudice, misinformation, ignorance or political calculation.
Where ministers landed
Grande-Marlaska said after the meeting that Schengen had not been compromised and that he wants Italy to drop its extra controls quickly.
Danish immigration minister Morten Bødskov said he was very satisfied with how fast Spain had acted, while arguing the episode showed why control of the EU’s external borders matters.
EU commissioner Magnus Brunner framed the crossings as a test of European resilience and border security, and said the bloc had passed it. He confirmed the EU has offered Spain emergency funding to reinforce its borders and manage the aftermath.
What triggered it remains unclear
Nobody has established with certainty why tens of thousands of people crossed from Morocco into Ceuta within a few hours. Brunner said criminal networks and disinformation circulating on social media are thought to have driven the surge.
That matches one account. Ayoub, a 23-year-old administrative assistant from Casablanca, told the BBC World Service programme Newshour that he decided to swim across after watching events unfold on social media. He called it the most traumatic experience of his life, and said he had not risked it for nothing: he wants to be free, to continue his studies and to have a chance at a decent life.
The crossings followed a Spanish Supreme Court ruling that migrants intercepted at sea en route to Ceuta or Melilla cannot be returned to Morocco without process. Moroccan authorities said afterwards that they had warned Spain the judgment would create a problem. Madrid disputes that, with a government spokeswoman saying nothing in its intelligence pointed to an event on this scale.
Conditions in the city
The Red Cross handed out food and other supplies to the migrants still in Ceuta on Monday. Images on Tuesday showed crowds gathering near the beach for food and water, some holding improvised banners reading “asylum”. People were photographed sleeping on the sand and on streets around the city.
Their treatment has become its own point of concern, particularly regarding unaccompanied minors. Local media report around 800 children being held in facilities across Ceuta.
Ahmed Haroun, a 29-year-old from Sudan, told Reuters that reaching Ceuta had been his aim for years and that he has family counting on him. He said conditions had improved over recent days and he is now receiving aid, but he does not know whether he will be permitted to stay.
Djibril, from Senegal, was critical of the Spanish response. Speaking to broadcaster RTVE, he said the people who arrived were not there to cause trouble and were not criminals, and described leaving them for five days without an answer as inhumane, with people going unfed, unwashed and falling ill.
Kamal, 24 and also from Sudan, told Reuters he had been forced into Morocco and was looking for somewhere he could be protected. Things are getting harder rather than easier, he said, with no food, nowhere to sleep and no blankets against the cold, living in front of the beach.
Grande-Marlaska said Spain is working closely with Morocco to prevent further breaches of its borders and that any migrants remaining in Ceuta will be returned as soon as possible. He maintained that the rights of everyone involved, minors especially, are being respected, and confirmed the Spanish government has set aside around €25m (£21.4m; $28.8m) to support children in the city.
