Hundreds of migrants swam from Morocco to Ceuta on Wednesday as Spain’s border authorities struggled to keep pace with the crossings. Juan Jesús Vivas said the pressure had become severe enough that the reception centers were “collapsed and saturated.”
Vivas told journalists that “In the last few days, more than 1,500 migrants, including adults and minors, have reached Ceuta by sea” and said “The reception centers are collapsed and saturated.” Spain’s interior ministry would not confirm the number of crossings or say how many migrants had reached Ceuta by swimming, while the territory’s government said hundreds were sleeping outside a reception center already over capacity.
Spain’s boats and Red Cross crews
Spain’s Civil Guard, maritime Rescue Services and the Red Cross were using boats to pick up swimmers before taking them to Ceuta. Fernando Grande-Marlaska called the pressure “an extraordinary, exceptional situation” and said authorities were dealing with it “with the means that we already have deployed there permanently.”
The crossings involved mainly Moroccans, along with a small number of Algerians who had been living in Morocco while trying to migrate to Europe. The pattern was unusual for the season, even though summer weather normally brings more sea crossings into Ceuta in this tiny Spanish territory at Spain’s northern tip.
Juan Jesús Vivas and Supreme Court ruling
Vivas linked the surge to a Spanish Supreme Court ruling earlier this month that said migrants who arrive by sea cannot be immediately pushed back across the border without due process. Omar Naji pushed back on that reading, saying most Moroccans would have been unaware of such legal decisions.
Vivas also said 60 bodies had been spotted at sea in the last year, a reminder that the route has carried far more than just the migrants who made it through on Wednesday. Spain’s interior minister said Moroccan authorities were cooperating and described the relationship with Morocco as “close and based on loyalty,” while also saying they were limiting irregular departures.
Spain’s next migration report
The next official checkpoint comes on Aug. 3, when Spain’s interior ministry said its bimonthly migration report is expected. Until then, Ceuta’s reception system faces the immediate strain of more than 1,500 arrivals by sea in just a few days, with many migrants still outside a center that cannot absorb the flow.
