EU faces pressure after mass migrant crossing into Spain's Ceuta enclave

Spain rushed troops and additional police to its North African enclave of Ceuta after an estimated 50,000 people attempted to cross from Morocco in a single day in late July, triggering one of the largest migration crises to affect the European Union's external land border in recent years.

The surge, which resulted in dozens of deaths, far exceeded the enclave's capacity, with the number of arrivals amounting to more than two-thirds of Ceuta's resident population, says the Guardian.

Ceuta, along with the nearby Spanish enclave of Melilla, forms the European Union's only land border with Africa. The territories, located on Morocco's Mediterranean coast, have long been a focal point for migrants seeking to reach Europe.

Spain has administered Ceuta since 1580, but Morocco does not recognise Spanish sovereignty over the territory, describing it as occupied land. The status of the enclaves has made them a recurring source of diplomatic tension between the two countries.

Most migrants in the latest crossing attempted to reach Ceuta by swimming around the Tarajal breakwater from the Moroccan town of Fnideq, creating chaotic scenes along the coastline.

By the evening of 31 July, Spanish authorities had returned more than 37,500 people to Morocco.

Moroccan authorities did not immediately comment on the surge.

Migration experts and Spanish officials pointed to several factors that may have contributed to the mass crossing.

The influx came shortly after Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez visited Algeria, Morocco's regional rival. Some migration researchers said Morocco may have relaxed border controls to demonstrate its leverage over Spain and the European Union.

Sánchez also blamed human traffickers for spreading false rumours about a recent Spanish Supreme Court ruling. According to the government, traffickers claimed the ruling meant irregular migrants arriving by sea could no longer be immediately returned to their country of origin.

The incident recalled a similar episode in 2021, when thousands of migrants entered Ceuta after Morocco eased border controls during a diplomatic dispute with Spain over its decision to provide medical treatment to the leader of the Western Sahara independence movement.

Spain deployed the armed forces and additional police to restore order in the enclave. Sánchez described the mass crossing as a "violation of Spain's territorial integrity".

The crisis prompted reactions across Europe. France tightened border controls with Spain, while Italy's right-wing government called for Spain to be suspended from the Schengen free movement area, although Ceuta and Melilla are not part of the standard Schengen arrangements.

The events also reignited debate within the European Union over migration policy, with some right-wing politicians arguing that Spain's recent measures to legalise some irregular migrants had encouraged the crossings.