Spanish authorities announced that migrant crossings into the North African enclave of Ceuta came to a halt overnight and that police had begun installing a 500-meter floating barrier along the border with Morocco following a massive surge in which at least 86 people died. In the meantime, testimonies have emerged from people who managed to reach the Spanish city on the northern tip of Africa.
Reuters footage showed Spanish soldiers and police patrolling the largely deserted Tarajal Beach, which was covered in fog.
The Civil Guard began installing the new barrier at 7:50 a.m. near the beach, one of the main entry points used by people attempting to reach the small Spanish territory.
The inflatable barrier, together with a line of anchored maritime buoys, is designed to rise between 30 and 70 centimeters above the water while extending one meter below the surface.
A channel between the barriers will allow Civil Guard vessels to patrol the area.
According to the Spanish authorities, around 50,000 people crossed into Ceuta by land and sea from Thursday onward in an unprecedented wave at the European Union’s only land border with Africa.
More than 48,000 people were returned to Morocco within 48 hours without major incidents.
At least 67 bodies were recovered on the Spanish side of the border after some migrants drowned while others died in a stampede.
They Were Promised Accommodation and a Visa
Many were driven to migrate by economic hardship and encouraged by rumors circulating on social media claiming they would receive visas and jobs.
Eighteen-year-old Mohamed set out from Fez, a city about 290 kilometers from the border. He is neither employed nor attending school. He crossed into Ceuta via the border breakwater but returned to Morocco the very next day.
He told El País that before setting off, he had been told he would receive accommodation in Spain and a visa that would allow him to travel to Algeciras, on the European side of the Strait of Gibraltar. It is not known who made those promises.
“In Spain, nobody helped us. They told us we would get accommodation and a visa for Algeciras, but it was all a lie,” Mohamed said.
After returning to Fnideq, he rested with other exhausted young men while trying to find transportation back to Fez. El País reported that many migrants spent the night outdoors, in parks and on vacant lots. Some received food from residents of Ceuta, while others were sent money by family members.
According to the Spanish daily ABC, citing sources close to the security services, members of the Spanish Civil Guard had been warning their superiors for days about the growing number of Moroccans attempting to reach Ceuta by sea following a ruling by the Supreme Court. The ruling established that migrants intercepted at sea could not be immediately returned to Morocco.
News of the decision quickly spread across Moroccan social media and went viral. According to available estimates, around 200 people per day attempted to swim several hundred meters around the border breakwater to reach Spanish territory. Reports of the first successful crossings encouraged many others to try. At the same time, rumors spread on social media claiming that the El Tarajal border crossing had been fully opened.
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Source: Blic, Foto: Antonio Sempere / AP