Europe's Southern Border Breached By 'Extraordinary' Influx of Migrants

0 Share Newsweek is a Trust Project member See more of our trusted coverage when you search. Prefer Newsweek on Google to see more of our trusted coverage when you search. Hundreds of migrants have breached the Spanish enclave of Ceuta after swimming across the border, authorities said.

Ceuta borders Morocco and is a migration flashpoint for those seeking entry into Europe. Ceuta and Melilla—another Spanish enclave in North Africa—are the European Union's only land borders with Africa.

Juan Jesús Vivas, the leader of Ceuta's government, said that more than 1,500 migrants—including adults and minors—had reached the enclave by sea in recent days. He said that reception centers were "collapsed and saturated," and described the situation was an "absolute humanitarian and social emergency."

Vivas also called for the Spanish government to declare a national emergency, and demanded that the army be deployed to the border.

Newsweek contacted Ceuta's government and the Spanish interior ministry for comment.

In Europe, controversy around illegal immigration often centers around boat crossings across the Mediterranean Sea into countries like Greece, Italy and the United Kingdom.

Most of the individuals arriving in Ceuta are Moroccans, along with a small number of Algerians who had been living in Morocco while trying to migrate to Europe.

Vivas has criticized a Spanish Supreme Court ruling that states that migrants who arrive by sea cannot be immediately taken back across the border without due process, unlike those who arrive by land.

Vivas said that around 300 people were arriving per day, which could escalate into a situation comparable to the May 2021 migration crisis, when 10,000 people entered within days.

Vivas added that 60 bodies had been recovered at sea in recent months, and that deaths could be prevented with stronger migration controls.

Footage posted on social media shows people swimming into Ceuta around fences and border infrastructure. Other images show the new arrivals running along the streets and cheering. Hundreds of migrants are camping outside a reception center.

While there are usually migrant crossings by sea during the summer months, Ceuta's authorities have said the current numbers are unusual.

Spanish Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska told the Spanish channel LaSexta that it was "an extraordinary, exceptional situation."

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez said on Thursday that the government was "fully committed to providing an immediate response to the situation in Ceuta."

"We are mobilizing all necessary resources, working with Moroccan and international authorities, and preparing the necessary measures to restore normalcy as soon as possible," he wrote on X.

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