{"id":2949,"date":"2026-08-02T14:39:38","date_gmt":"2026-08-02T14:39:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cnnglobalnews.com\/2026\/08\/02\/chaos-of-border-crossing-gives-way-to-limbo-for-moroccans-on-ceutas-streets\/"},"modified":"2026-08-02T14:39:38","modified_gmt":"2026-08-02T14:39:38","slug":"chaos-of-border-crossing-gives-way-to-limbo-for-moroccans-on-ceutas-streets","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.cnnglobalnews.com\/?p=2949","title":{"rendered":"Chaos of border crossing gives way to limbo for Moroccans on Ceuta\u2019s streets"},"content":{"rendered":"<div data-gu-name=\"media\" class=\"dcr-14sl0e4\">\n<div class=\"dcr-17l77cs\">\n<figure id=\"aed99352-fc81-4cd5-9d53-cfe66ef83acd\" class=\"dcr-191xnya\">\n<div id=\"img-1\" class=\"dcr-1t7hdmw\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"People sit or lie on the ground near a tree on a beach\" src=\"https:\/\/i.guim.co.uk\/img\/media\/d2eb725146a70e9f737bf0b62b8e2859147a98bd\/554_139_2292_1833\/master\/2292.jpg?width=465&amp;dpr=1&amp;s=none&amp;crop=none\" width=\"465\" height=\"371.8782722513089\" loading=\"eager\" class=\"dcr-up96pv\"><span class=\"dcr-kogzpx\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"dcr-18mnkpm\">\n<div class=\"dcr-1294qmb\"><label for=\"the-checkbox\" class=\"dcr-4sl2vt\"><\/label> <\/p>\n<div id=\"the-caption\"><figcaption data-spacefinder-role=\"inline\" class=\"dcr-1mfxiaj\"><span class=\"dcr-13i4yc9\"><\/span><span class=\"dcr-1cipnsy\">People rest on a beach under the supervision of Guardia Civil officers in Ceuta on Saturday.<\/span> Photograph: Anadolu\/Getty Images<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><\/span><a href=\"#img-1\" data-ignore=\"global-link-styling\" class=\"open-lightbox dcr-zwabc0\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><button data-element-id=\"aed99352-fc81-4cd5-9d53-cfe66ef83acd\" type=\"button\" class=\"open-lightbox dcr-1bitgpn\" aria-haspopup=\"dialog\"><span class=\"dcr-1shbixy\">View image in fullscreen<\/span><\/button><\/a><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"dcr-qda0hp\"><figcaption data-spacefinder-role=\"inline\" class=\"dcr-1e9iiy9\"><span class=\"dcr-13i4yc9\"><\/span><span class=\"dcr-1cipnsy\">People rest on a beach under the supervision of Guardia Civil officers in Ceuta on Saturday.<\/span> Photograph: Anadolu\/Getty Images<\/figcaption><\/span><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div data-gu-name=\"headline\" class=\"dcr-ql9l8l\">\n<div class=\"dcr-6mja0y\">\n<h1 class=\"dcr-l0wuod\">Chaos of border crossing gives way to limbo for Moroccans on Ceuta\u2019s streets<\/h1>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div data-gu-name=\"standfirst\" class=\"dcr-1xpojbf\">\n<div class=\"dcr-1kvrm3n\">\n<p>People among the more than 50,000 who entered Spanish enclave this week describe the journey and their prospects<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div data-gu-name=\"body\" class=\"dcr-x1al2c\">\n<div class=\"dcr-11gq2tx\">\n<div id=\"maincontent\" class=\"dcr-1w2vkyc\">\n<div class=\"article-body-commercial-selector article-body-viewer-selector dcr-ogvvui\">\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\"><span style=\"color:var(--drop-cap);font-weight:500\" class=\"dcr-1iwzucl\">F<\/span>our days ago, Youssef El Abbas saw an opportunity to reclaim the life he had lost seven years earlier. News was circulating that about 400 people had swum from <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/world\/morocco\" data-link-name=\"in body link\" data-component=\"auto-linked-tag\">Morocco<\/a> to the neighbouring Spanish enclave of Ceuta on the north African coast, approximately 12 miles (19km) across the strait of Gibraltar from mainland Spain.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">Here was a chance for the 44-year-old Moroccan father of four to return to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/world\/spain\" data-link-name=\"in body link\" data-component=\"auto-linked-tag\">Spain<\/a>, from which he had been deported when his residency expired after the loss of his job in Bilbao in 2019.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">El Abbas took a taxi and headed to the city of T\u00e9touan, south of the enclave. While en route, he saw Facebook posts and news reports claiming that the Moroccan authorities were allowing people to pass through their side of the border. That meant that unlike those who had crossed the previous night, he could simply travel overland before swimming for just five minutes across the border from Moroccan to Spanish territory to avoid the Spanish border controls.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"44fed90b-1929-4f88-a207-27ae4f3fc92d\" data-spacefinder-role=\"inline\" data-spacefinder-type=\"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.ImageBlockElement\" class=\"dcr-d9bay7\">\n<div id=\"img-2\" class=\"dcr-1t7hdmw\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Dozens of people walk along a stony beach lined with security fencing\" src=\"https:\/\/i.guim.co.uk\/img\/media\/97a367a68b816eeb37ee5b4d2d07823cb5881fac\/0_0_1620_1080\/master\/1620.jpg?width=445&amp;dpr=1&amp;s=none&amp;crop=none\" width=\"445\" height=\"296.66666666666663\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"dcr-up96pv\"><a href=\"#img-2\" data-ignore=\"global-link-styling\" class=\"open-lightbox dcr-zwabc0\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><button data-element-id=\"44fed90b-1929-4f88-a207-27ae4f3fc92d\" type=\"button\" class=\"open-lightbox dcr-1bitgpn\" aria-haspopup=\"dialog\"><span class=\"dcr-1shbixy\">View image in fullscreen<\/span><\/button><\/a><\/div><figcaption data-spacefinder-role=\"inline\" class=\"dcr-174mzkf\"><span class=\"dcr-vyhg7z\"><\/span><span class=\"dcr-1cipnsy\">People returning to Morocco on Sunday after crossing into Ceuta.<\/span> Photograph: Reduan Dris\/EPA<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">He reached T\u00e9touan to find the city completely overwhelmed. \u201cYoung men were running through the streets, flooding every corner,\u201d he said. By the time a second taxi took El Abbas to Fnideq, the town bordering Ceuta, he realised that the usual blockades and checkpoints preventing people without European documents from even approaching the frontier had been removed.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"c9819901-000e-40b6-a6dc-0674377e4fba\" data-spacefinder-role=\"supporting\" data-spacefinder-type=\"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.ImageBlockElement\" class=\"dcr-18sm3qm\">\n<div id=\"img-3\" class=\"dcr-1t7hdmw\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Youssef El Abbas sitting on a wall with a bandage on his injured right arm\" src=\"https:\/\/i.guim.co.uk\/img\/media\/5e00b454f1634dba4192f17eaa6411f6c9e544d5\/1123_92_3649_2917\/master\/3649.jpg?width=445&amp;dpr=1&amp;s=none&amp;crop=none\" width=\"445\" height=\"355.7317073170732\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"dcr-up96pv\"><a href=\"#img-3\" data-ignore=\"global-link-styling\" class=\"open-lightbox dcr-zwabc0\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><button data-element-id=\"c9819901-000e-40b6-a6dc-0674377e4fba\" type=\"button\" class=\"open-lightbox dcr-tgembn\" aria-haspopup=\"dialog\"><span class=\"dcr-1shbixy\">View image in fullscreen<\/span><\/button><\/a><\/div><figcaption data-spacefinder-role=\"inline\" class=\"dcr-1ci1e33\"><span class=\"dcr-vyhg7z\"><\/span><span class=\"dcr-1cipnsy\">Youssef El Abbas in Ceuta.<\/span> Photograph: Okba Mohammad<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">\u201cThe Moroccan police were shouting at us: \u2018Go, go, go! Run now, run into Spain,\u2019\u201d he said. \u201cThe night before, they were beating people. But that morning they were letting us through. Nothing made sense.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">Despite the crowds, El Abbas noticed the police were only letting Moroccans cross over. \u201cAll the sub-Saharan migrants were being pushed back by force.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">He reached the border at 2.45pm on Wednesday. By 3pm, after a short swim, he was standing on Spanish soil. Not everyone was so lucky.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">\u201cIn just 10 minutes in the water, I saw four people floating dead in Moroccan waters,\u201d he said. \u201cPeople were pulling their bodies out.\u201d They were among at least 72 people who drowned or were crushed trying to reach the Spanish territory.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">El Abbas is just one of the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/world\/2026\/jul\/31\/ceuta-spain-morocco-border-deaths\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">50,000 or so people to have crossed into Ceuta this week<\/a>, in what Spain\u2019s prime minister, Pedro S\u00e1nchez, described as \u201ca violation of Spain\u2019s territorial integrity\u201d.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"4aa4e716-ed1e-4181-aa98-f1fed745f902\" class=\"element element-interactive element--inline element-inline dcr-1uqv7sk\" data-alt=\"Map showing location of Ceuta between Morocco and Spain, and another map showing line of Morocco-Ceuta border and Tarajal breakwater\" data-testid=\"interactive-element-Map%20showing%20location%20of%20Ceuta%20between%20Morocco%20and%20Spain,%20and%20another%20map%20showing%20line%20of%20Morocco-Ceuta%20border%20and%20Tarajal%20breakwater\" data-spacefinder-role=\"inline\">\n<div data-name=\"placeholder\" class=\"dcr-1x767ir\"><\/div>\n<p><a data-name=\"placeholder\" href=\"https:\/\/interactive.guim.co.uk\/uploader\/embed\/2026\/07\/spain_ceuta\/giv-32554F90BJmAteSaJ\/\" class=\"dcr-olkhl1\">Map showing location of Ceuta between Morocco and Spain, and another map showing line of Morocco-Ceuta border and Tarajal breakwater<\/a><\/figure>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">Madrid has attributed the latest influx to \u201chuman-trafficking mafias\u201d that have taken advantage of a decision by Spain\u2019s supreme court, which recently ruled that those intercepted at sea while trying to enter Ceuta or Melilla \u2013 the other Spanish enclave on the north African coast \u2013 could not be summarily returned under special rules.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">But there has also been speculation that the Moroccan authorities may have opened the border to signal their displeasure at S\u00e1nchez\u2019s recent visit to Algeria, which supports efforts to free the disputed territory of Western Sahara from Moroccan occupation.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">Morocco\u2019s ambassador to Spain, Karima Benyaich Mill\u00e1n, said Rabat was not happy about the mass crossing, adding that it hoped those in Ceuta would return.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">Moroccan government sources <a href=\"https:\/\/www.europapress.es\/nacional\/noticia-marruecos-achaca-entradas-masivas-ceuta-bandas-criminales-dice-colaboracion-espana-ejemplar-20260730131739.html\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">told the Europa Press news agency<\/a> that the surge of people entering Ceuta was down to \u201ccriminal organisations\u201d and insisted that Rabat\u2019s cooperation with Spain remained \u201cexemplary\u201d.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">In May 2021, Rabat loosened border controls \u2013 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/world\/2021\/may\/17\/record-1000-migrants-reach-spains-north-african-enclave-ceuta-in-a-day\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">allowing 10,000 people to cross into Ceuta over the course of two days<\/a> \u2013 during a diplomatic standoff triggered after Madrid allowed a Western Sahara independence leader to be treated for Covid-19 in Spain.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"28e60045-9fae-4eb4-91a6-6a590d42005a\" data-spacefinder-role=\"inline\" data-spacefinder-type=\"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.ImageBlockElement\" class=\"dcr-d9bay7\">\n<div id=\"img-4\" class=\"dcr-1t7hdmw\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"A man bends down to pick through various pieces of washed-up objects\" src=\"https:\/\/i.guim.co.uk\/img\/media\/ed7b394c82f2d0d7b5d618f205e06bfaf78e33fb\/0_0_5622_3750\/master\/5622.jpg?width=445&amp;dpr=1&amp;s=none&amp;crop=none\" width=\"445\" height=\"296.8249733191035\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"dcr-up96pv\"><a href=\"#img-4\" data-ignore=\"global-link-styling\" class=\"open-lightbox dcr-zwabc0\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><button data-element-id=\"28e60045-9fae-4eb4-91a6-6a590d42005a\" type=\"button\" class=\"open-lightbox dcr-1bitgpn\" aria-haspopup=\"dialog\"><span class=\"dcr-1shbixy\">View image in fullscreen<\/span><\/button><\/a><\/div><figcaption data-spacefinder-role=\"inline\" class=\"dcr-174mzkf\"><span class=\"dcr-vyhg7z\"><\/span><span class=\"dcr-1cipnsy\">A man bends down to pick up a pair of shoes from debris washed up on Ceuta\u2019s shore.<\/span> Photograph: Pedro Nunes\/Reuters<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">El Abbas said he had never stopped dreaming of returning to Spain, where he had worked mainly in the hospitality sector for 14 years. Since being deported to Morocco in 2019, he has lived apart from his wife and four daughters, who remain in the northern Spanish city of Bilbao, while scraping by with occasional work repairing mobile phones alongside his father.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">\u201cI never stopped thinking about coming back,\u201d he said. \u201cIn Morocco, I was alive, but I wasn\u2019t really living.\u201d<\/p>\n<figure data-spacefinder-role=\"inline\" data-spacefinder-type=\"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.NewsletterSignupBlockElement\" class=\"dcr-d9bay7\"><a data-ignore=\"global-link-styling\" href=\"#EmailSignup-skip-link-21\" class=\"dcr-76akua\">skip past newsletter promotion<\/a><\/p>\n<div class=\"dcr-1tr4stg\">\n<div class=\"dcr-12qa5gp\">\n<hr class=\"dcr-1cjdlyj\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p id=\"EmailSignup-skip-link-21\" aria-label=\"after newsletter promotion\" role=\"note\" class=\"dcr-76akua\">after newsletter promotion<\/p>\n<\/figure>\n<figure id=\"ec9bba9b-1d7d-4e32-8c59-7492869ccfa6\" data-spacefinder-role=\"richLink\" data-spacefinder-type=\"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.RichLinkBlockElement\" class=\"dcr-1oq85qr\">\n<div data-print-layout=\"hide\" data-link-name=\"rich-link-22 | 22\" data-component=\"rich-link\" data-name=\"placeholder\" class=\"dcr-1rx5ky9\">\n<div data-format-theme=\"5\" data-format-design=\"0\" data-format-display=\"0\" class=\"dcr-uyoh2p\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/world\/2026\/jul\/31\/ceuta-spain-eu-border-africa\" class=\"dcr-f35c0u\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"dcr-vvxpdt\">\n<div class=\"dcr-6z6e7\">\n<div class=\"dcr-zh9rih\">Why is Ceuta a migration flashpoint and how were so many people able to cross from Morocco?<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"dcr-oj13vq\">\n<div class=\"dcr-ef9nua\">Read more<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">The return has been bittersweet. When he swam ashore in Ceuta, a Spanish Guardia Civil officer extended a hand to pull him from the sea. But that gesture of aid eventually gave way to one of violence. Three days after arriving, the group of people he was with were surrounded by a military patrol and beaten.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">\u201cThe same hand that helped me out of the water was the one that later hit me,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">El Abbas\u2019s story is hardly unique. Although more than 48,000 people had crossed back into Morocco by Friday night, hundreds are still sleeping in parks, public squares and on pavements, waiting for a chance to move on or simply to find somewhere to rest. It appears to be virtually impossible for migrants to leave Ceuta for mainland Spain.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">Said, 17, from Casablanca, was sitting on a kerb a few hundred metres away. He, too, had joined the Ceuta-bound crowds when he heard that the border was open. But the jubilation had given way to reality and all he had was a bottle of water and the carton of yoghurt a local resident had given him.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"be2cf45e-8f98-46b6-9201-343790d17595\" data-spacefinder-role=\"inline\" data-spacefinder-type=\"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.YoutubeBlockElement\" class=\"dcr-d9bay7\">\n<div data-chromatic=\"ignore\">\n<div data-component=\"youtube-atom\" data-atom-id=\"bea789a9-578a-4983-8050-2a878ee77f8c\" data-video-id=\"ob9K0RFmJxY\" data-video-unique-id=\"ob9K0RFmJxY-27\">\n<div data-testid=\"youtube-sticky-ob9K0RFmJxY-27\" data-is-sticky=\"false\" class=\"dcr-0\">\n<div class=\"dcr-0\">\n<div class=\"dcr-1orj1f6\">\n<div data-format-theme=\"0\" data-format-design=\"10\" data-format-display=\"0\" class=\"dcr-yhqs4q\"><button data-testid=\"youtube-overlay-ob9K0RFmJxY-27\" aria-label=\"Play video: Tens of thousands of migrants cross into Spanish enclave Ceuta from Morocco - video\" type=\"button\" class=\"dcr-16xaxky\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Tens of thousands of migrants cross into Spanish enclave Ceuta from Morocco - video\" src=\"https:\/\/i.guim.co.uk\/img\/media\/457b92dbbb6d234fdf54aa53ccccdf81f6f551be\/0_0_1920_1080\/1920.jpg?width=465&amp;dpr=1&amp;s=none&amp;crop=none\" height=\"259\" width=\"460\" class=\"dcr-18dqxt1\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"dcr-bdvwsb\">\n<div class=\"dcr-1aekkwd\"><span class=\"dcr-1f90r0x\">3:37<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"play-icon dcr-11ol26a\"><\/div>\n<p><\/button><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><figcaption data-spacefinder-role=\"inline\" class=\"dcr-174mzkf\"><span class=\"dcr-1hnminq\"><\/span><span class=\"dcr-1cipnsy\">Tens of thousands of migrants cross into Spanish enclave Ceuta from Morocco &#8211; video<\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">The teenager said he was taken to a centre for unaccompanied minors after he crossed, but there were no places available, so he ended up back on the streets. According to a soldier who asked to remain anonymous, the current protocol for the authorities \u2013 including the military, the police and the Guardia Civil \u2013 is to treat unaccompanied minors as regular migrants and return them to Morocco.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">Said and the other teenagers with him said no one would sell them food or allow them into shops and restaurants because they did not speak Spanish.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">Three days after the mass influx, Ceuta is slowly trying to recover a sense of normality. By early evening on Saturday, cafe terraces were beginning to fill again and some businesses had reopened their doors. Many of the remaining arrivals are being tended to by Ceuta locals, who walk the streets handing out bottles of water, sandwiches, blankets and clothes. Others stop to ask if they need help or to offer to call a relative.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">Such shows of solidarity have been threatened by the arrival of far-right politicians and a neo-Nazi group, all keen to use the humanitarian crisis for their own ends.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">\u201cThey\u2019re going to exploit our feelings to claim the credit and say they defended Ceuta,\u201d said a local woman called Malika. \u201cWe don\u2019t want them here. If they want to defend something, they should go somewhere else.\u201d<\/p>\n<figure id=\"955ca720-3ba7-4917-b6ce-cfc77cc4b2e5\" data-spacefinder-role=\"inline\" data-spacefinder-type=\"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.ImageBlockElement\" class=\"dcr-d9bay7\">\n<div id=\"img-5\" class=\"dcr-1t7hdmw\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Spanish soldiers escort a group of people across the border into Morocco\" src=\"https:\/\/i.guim.co.uk\/img\/media\/9716e9d2f5969874fabc890a2eb198f2c5741204\/0_0_3873_2582\/master\/3873.jpg?width=445&amp;dpr=1&amp;s=none&amp;crop=none\" width=\"445\" height=\"296.66666666666663\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"dcr-up96pv\"><a href=\"#img-5\" data-ignore=\"global-link-styling\" class=\"open-lightbox dcr-zwabc0\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><button data-element-id=\"955ca720-3ba7-4917-b6ce-cfc77cc4b2e5\" type=\"button\" class=\"open-lightbox dcr-1bitgpn\" aria-haspopup=\"dialog\"><span class=\"dcr-1shbixy\">View image in fullscreen<\/span><\/button><\/a><\/div><figcaption data-spacefinder-role=\"inline\" class=\"dcr-174mzkf\"><span class=\"dcr-vyhg7z\"><\/span><span class=\"dcr-1cipnsy\">People who crossed into Ceuta this week are escorted back to Morocco by the Spanish army on Saturday.<\/span> Photograph: Antonio Sempere\/AP<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">Malika, who was born in Ceuta to a soldier who served in the Spanish army, rejected the notion that the city should be defined solely by the political confrontation that followed this week\u2019s mass arrival. But she also acknowledged the pressure on a city of just over 80,000 people. \u201cIt would have been an impossible situation for any city,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">Fatima Hamed Hossain, a member of Ceuta\u2019s assembly, fears that the strain created by the crisis has deepened divisions within the city. \u201cEverything we\u2019ve lived through has created tensions between neighbours,\u201d she said. \u201cThat\u2019s exactly what feeds the far right.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">As a caravan of people returned back over the border, Said\u2019s mind was on the future. His goal is simple: get a place in a protection centre, spend the next year learning Spanish and, once he turns 18, find work as a barber. What he fears most is ending up without legal documentation and seeing that plan collapse before it has even begun.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">Leaving is not on his agenda, however. \u201cAll I need,\u201d he said, \u201cis a chance.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div data-print-layout=\"hide\" class=\"dcr-swayiu\"><span class=\"dcr-1xhbmzr\">Explore more on these topics<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"dcr-2c03t5\">\n<ul class=\"dcr-p7nd18\">\n<li class=\"dcr-r721ee\"><a href=\"\/world\/spain\" class=\"dcr-856iwi\">Spain<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"dcr-r721ee\"><a href=\"\/world\/morocco\" class=\"dcr-856iwi\">Morocco<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"dcr-r721ee\"><a href=\"\/world\/migration\" class=\"dcr-856iwi\">Migration<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"dcr-r721ee\"><a href=\"\/world\/africa\" class=\"dcr-856iwi\">Africa<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"dcr-r721ee\"><a href=\"\/world\/europe-news\" class=\"dcr-856iwi\">Europe<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"dcr-r721ee\"><a href=\"\/world\/middleeast\" class=\"dcr-856iwi\">Middle East and north Africa<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"dcr-r721ee\"><a href=\"\/tone\/news\" class=\"dcr-856iwi\">news<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"dcr-313bdz\"><a href=\"mailto:?subject=Chaos%20of%20border%20crossing%20gives%20way%20to%20limbo%20for%20Moroccans%20on%20Ceuta%E2%80%99s%20streets&amp;body=https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/world\/2026\/aug\/02\/ceuta-border-crossing-spain-morocco?CMP=share_btn_url\" class=\"dcr-ncybeu\">Share<\/a><\/p>\n<div class=\"dcr-19bkree\"><a data-link-name=\"meta-syndication-article\" href=\"https:\/\/syndication.theguardian.com\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.theguardian.com%2Fworld%2F2026%2Faug%2F02%2Fceuta-border-crossing-spain-morocco&amp;type=article&amp;internalpagecode=world\/2026\/aug\/02\/ceuta-border-crossing-spain-morocco\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\" title=\"Reuse this content\" class=\"dcr-1c41onw\">Reuse this content<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div data-gu-name=\"right-column\" class=\"dcr-1kq7f60\"><span class=\"dcr-1ryr20k\"><\/span><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>People rest on a beach under the supervision of Guardia Civil officers in Ceuta on Saturday. Photograph: Anadolu\/Getty Images View image in fullscreen People rest on a beach under the &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnnglobalnews.com\/?p=2949\" class=\"more-link\">Read More<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":2950,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2949","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-world-news","entry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cnnglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2949","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cnnglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cnnglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cnnglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2949"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.cnnglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2949\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cnnglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/2950"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cnnglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2949"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cnnglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2949"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cnnglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2949"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}