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Friday, February 14, 2025
HomeWorldAfricaSpain sends troops as 8,000 migrants enter enclave

Spain sends troops as 8,000 migrants enter enclave

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Daily US Times: Spain has deployed troops after record numbers of migrants entered the country’s north African enclave of Ceuta from Morocco.

Spanish officials say some 8,000 people have reached Ceuta in two days,

Spanish authorities say the migrants – who include about 1,500 minors – either swam around the border fences that jut out into the sea or walked across at low tide.

Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez has vowed to restore order. Spain says around half of the migrants who entered the enclave have been sent back to Morocco.

By Tuesday evening, footage of the beach showed that nearly all migrants had been cleared from the site.

The Spanish Prime Minister travelled to Ceuta and Melilla to deal with the crisis, which exacerbated diplomatic tensions with Morocco.

Morocco withdrew its ambassador for consultations after the foreign minister of Spain told the envoy of her “disgust” at what had happened.

Most of the migrants entered the Spanish enclave are said to be from Morocco. The Spanish soldiers have been deployed to the beach to help border police at Ceuta’s main entry point – Tarajal, on the enclave’s south side.

Dramatic scenes were captured offshore as officers from Spain’s Guardia Civil went into the sea to rescue young children and families waded through the water.

Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska said 200 troops, plus 200 extra police were going to assist Ceuta’s normal 1,100-strong border force.

The Spanish enclave has some 80,000 residents.

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