In Morocco, 111 people were detained while attempting to enter Ceuta
According to Reuters, Moroccan police detained 111 people who were attempting to enter the Spanish territory of Ceuta in North Africa. Enhanced security measures were implemented on both sides of the border after calls for a new mass crossing appeared on social media.
According to The Guardian, citing Reuters, those detained included 109 migrants from sub-Saharan African countries and two Moroccan citizens. A source in Morocco’s Ministry of the Interior told Reuters that they were detained in or near the town of Fnideq—not far from Ceuta.
According to the Spanish news agency EFE, Moroccan police used tear gas to disperse groups of migrants who had gathered on the hills about three kilometers from the border. A Reuters correspondent saw hundreds of police officers returning from the hills near Fnideq: some were in riot gear, while others were in plain clothes. EFE and the Spanish public television channel TVE reported that Morocco’s Ministry of the Interior ordered their journalists to leave Fnideq immediately, without explaining why.
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The attempt to cross the border occurred two weeks after more than 72,000 migrants entered Ceuta. At least 96 people died while trying to reach European territory. Following those events, Spain established a maritime barrier and deployed more than 500 additional police officers from the mainland to Ceuta. The total number of law enforcement officers in Ceuta exceeded 1,600.
Spanish Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska stated that the reinforcements would remain in Ceuta for as long as necessary. According to him, about 5,000 migrants remained in Ceuta. He also noted that people who entered the country irregularly would not be able to remain in Ceuta, travel to mainland Spain, or obtain legal status, except in rare cases of particular vulnerability.
Earlier, Rabat stated that it was monitoring the spread of messages of unknown origin calling for a mass border crossing on August 15 and warned that organizers and participants would be prosecuted. Authorities also prevented several groups of people from boarding trains and buses heading north in Morocco, in Casablanca, Fez, and Kenitra.
