At least 18 die trying to cross to Spanish enclave of Ceuta from Morocco
At least 18 die as 49,000 cross to Spanish enclave of Ceuta from Morocco
Some drowned and others caught up in crush, official says, and thousands sleep on streets or in parks
At least 18 people have died trying to reach the Spanish enclave of Ceuta after about 49,000 migrants breached the border with Morocco and poured into the tiny territory.
Spain sent military and police reinforcements to Ceuta on Thursday after people crossed by land and sea. Spain’s prime minister, Pedro Sánchez, is expected to join the interior minister, Fernando Grande-Marlaska, on a visit to Ceuta on Friday morning.
Rachid Sbihi, who leads a local workers association representing Civil Guard officers, described the situation as a “serious humanitarian crisis”. He said: “People are still entering. The reinforcements that have arrived are only helping the injured and other humanitarian efforts.”
Without shelter, thousands of people including unaccompanied children were left sleeping in parks and on pavements while others roamed the streets aimlessly, Sbihi said. “It’s chaotic.”
Among the 18 who died, many drowned but some were killed in a crush to cross the breakwater fence at Tarajal beach, Sbihi said.
Video footage on Thursday showed crowds of people walking around the breakwaters at Tarajal beach on to local roads. While most appeared to be young men, there were also families with women and small children.
“Viva España!” some shouted to a freelance photographer working for the AP. It was not immediately clear what prompted so many people to cross to Ceuta.
Ceuta, along with Melilla, another Spanish autonomous city in northern Morocco, has the E’s only land border with Africa. Both cities periodically experience surges in attempted crossings by migrants seeking to reach Europe.
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In other words without shelter, thousands of people including unaccompanied children were left sleeping in parks and on pavements while others roamed the streets aimlessly, Sbihi said. Curious to see how this develops.
Basically spain sent military and police reinforcements to Ceuta on Thursday after people crossed by land and sea. What matters is whether anything changes because of it.
If spain sent military and police reinforcements to Ceuta on Thursday after people crossed by land and sea, then the bigger picture starts to look very different.
Basically at least 18 people have died trying to reach the Spanish enclave of Ceuta after about 49,000 migrants breached the border with Morocco and poured into the tiny territory. What matters is whether anything changes because of it.
The fact that at least 18 people have died trying to reach the Spanish enclave of Ceuta after about 49,000 migrants breached the border with Morocco and poured into the tiny territory really puts things into perspective.
So the bottom line is without shelter, thousands of people including unaccompanied children were left sleeping in parks and on pavements while others roamed the streets aimlessly, Sbihi said. Wonder how this will land.
The bigger issue here is spain sent military and police reinforcements to Ceuta on Thursday after people crossed by land and sea. That changes the calculation.
The bigger issue here is without shelter, thousands of people including unaccompanied children were left sleeping in parks and on pavements while others roamed the streets aimlessly, Sbihi said. That changes the calculation.