EU Calls Emergency Meeting After Unprecedented Migrant Wave Hits Ceuta
Theo Al Jazeera Staff
EU interior ministers will hold an emergency meeting after about 60,000 migrants flooded into Spain's Ceuta enclave in days, the largest such wave in the area's history. Spain says most have left, but the crisis has triggered political reactions and border controls across Europe.
The European Union (EU) has called an emergency meeting of interior ministers after around 60,000 migrants flooded into Ceuta, Spain's North African territory, within a few days. This is considered the largest migration wave ever recorded in the area.
According to local authorities, between Wednesday and Friday last week, about 60,000 migrants entered Ceuta, which has a population of only about 84,000. Spain's Interior Ministry put the figure lower, at around 50,000. At least 72 people have died trying to reach the territory.
Many migrants swam from Morocco using life jackets or makeshift flotation devices, while others attempted to scale the border fence. Local officials said reception centers were overwhelmed and called for an emergency response.
By Saturday, Spanish Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska said “almost all” migrants had left and the situation in Ceuta had returned to normal. However, he warned the crisis was not officially over and that police and military reinforcements would remain stationed there.
The scale of this migration wave is far larger than a similar event in May 2021, when about 12,000 people crossed from Morocco into Ceuta over two days.
Why is the EU meeting urgently?
Ireland, which holds the rotating EU presidency, said it had convened an emergency virtual meeting of the bloc's interior ministers for Tuesday to discuss the crisis. The meeting follows a joint statement by 22 of the 27 EU member states calling for “coordinated action and reinforced external borders.”
“We cannot allow uncontrolled mass crossings, the weaponization of migration, or other hybrid threats to create the perception that illegal entry into the EU is possible,” the joint statement said.
Meanwhile, Italy suspended the Schengen open-border policy with Spain. Madrid condemned the move, arguing the practical impact was unclear since the two countries share no land border. France and the UK expressed “solidarity” with Spain, but France also announced it would quintuple police numbers at the border with Spain, while Portugal stepped up controls at its southern land and sea borders.
A leading European conservative politician called for greater powers for the European Border and Coast Guard Agency (Frontex). Manfred Weber, leader of the European People's Party, said: “If a left-wing government in Spain is not willing to protect the external border, then Frontex must also be given command. Europe must go to that border and restore order.”
What caused the migration wave?
The specific cause of the crisis remains unclear. One theory suggests that a ruling by Spain's Supreme Court on July 8, which stated that migrants intercepted at sea cannot be immediately returned, may have encouraged migrants. However, the ruling does not apply to those entering Spain overland.
Some experts doubt this theory, arguing that few migrants would be aware of the court ruling, and that the relatively open migration policy of Spain's government may have played a larger role.
Interior Minister Grande-Marlaska blamed people-smuggling networks for taking advantage of vulnerable migrants and spreading misinterpretations of the court ruling. He insisted Morocco is “absolutely a reliable partner” and said there was no intelligence suggesting an imminent mass crossing.
Some observers suggest Morocco may have been behind the incident, encouraged by the United States and Israel. Both US President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu have recently criticized Spain's actions and statements, particularly regarding Palestine and the US-Israel war on Iran.
Since gaining independence in 1956, Morocco has always claimed sovereignty over Ceuta and Melilla. Spain firmly rejects any proposal to change the status quo. Journalist Ignacio Cembrero, who specializes in North African migration, said Moroccan security forces appeared to “stand idly by,” and that the country had “seen an opportunity” to force Spain into negotiations.
What did Trump say?
US President Donald Trump seized on the event as a campaign opportunity, linking the Ceuta situation to his administration's and the Republican Party's tough migration policies. “It looks like an invasion of a country by hundreds of thousands of people,” he said on Friday, warning the same could happen to the US if Republicans do not win the November midterm elections.
The US State Department on Saturday updated its travel advisory for Spain, raising the alert for Ceuta to Level 3, recommending Americans reconsider travel due to unrest. It said “the massive and uncontrolled influx of migrants from Morocco into Ceuta could lead to dangerous and unpredictable security situations.”
Meanwhile, Esteban Beltran, director of Amnesty International in Spain, urged Spanish and Moroccan authorities to prioritize human rights in their response. “The principle of non-refoulement is absolute, and collective expulsions are prohibited in all circumstances,” he said.
