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Bota
Symbolic image: EU interior ministers meet after mass crossing into CeutaSymbolic image

EU interior ministers meet after mass crossing into Ceuta

15 sources

Tens of thousands of people crossed from Morocco into the Spanish enclave of Ceuta on Thursday and Friday, and most have since gone back. EU interior ministers hold emergency talks on Tuesday after Italy and Denmark demanded Spain's temporary suspension from Schengen.

What happened

  • Spanish estimates for arrivals on Thursday, 30 July and Friday range from about 50,000 to more than 60,000; Morocco's interior ministry counted 40,000.
  • Death tolls differ: Ceuta authorities report 88 bodies, Le Monde cites local authorities on at least 72, Morocco reported 11 drownings.
  • Spain says roughly 69,500 people returned within four days; officials put those still in the city at 2,500 to 5,000.
  • One local official counted 862 unaccompanied minors remaining; Save the Children speaks of close to 1,000, in a city of 84,000 residents.
  • Spain's supreme court ruled on 8 July that migrants swimming to Ceuta cannot be summarily deported; Spain is now installing a 500-metre floating barrier.

The view from outside

Israel's Jerusalem Post carries an analyst who reads the crossings as the opening of a far larger movement of young Africans toward Europe, and reports conspiracy claims about Israeli involvement that no other source raises.

The Guardian adds that Rome wants to accelerate offshore migration centres, which Europe's top human rights expert recently called potential "human rights black holes".

What could happen next

  • Whether Rabat steered the influx stays disputed: Spanish intelligence found no state planning but says Moroccan border surveillance was lifted.
  • Tuesday's videoconference is to draw lessons; Le Monde notes suspending Spain from Schengen is legally impossible under EU law.
  • Madrid has not requested Frontex support despite offered EU funds; provision for the remaining minors is unresolved.
  • Italy's checks on third-country travellers from Spain, in force since Saturday, are set for August only.
How the camps see it

  • Spain: Madrid says the return system worked and calls other governments selfish and prejudiced, while Ceuta's leader calls the influx an attack on Spanish territorial integrity that Morocco at least encouraged or permitted.

  • Morocco: Rabat blames smuggling rings, the "malicious exploitation of the digital space" and misinformation about the Spanish court ruling, and presents itself as a reliable partner offering further cooperation.

  • Italy and Denmark: Rome and Copenhagen organised a letter of 22 leaders blaming Spain's regularisation of 500,000 undocumented migrants and called for Spain's temporary exclusion from Schengen.

Also involved

European Commission

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