Above the Benitez Beach in Ceuta Clouds of smoke rose on Thursday evening. Migrants, most of them from sub-Saharan Africa, have been camping on the beach not far from the port of the autonomous city for weeks. They had built makeshift huts out of sticks, palm fronds and tarpaulins to provide some protection from the sun. Some of them are now just ashes: a group of angry Ceuta residents set fire to parts of the camp and the few belongings of the newcomers.
It was the temporary highlight of one escalationwhich has gripped Ceuta for days. For three evenings in a row, hundreds of residents marched through the city demanding faster returns of migrants without residency rights. Chat groups discuss “self-defense groups” and neighborhood patrols; Spanish media are reporting calls for real hunts against migrants.
Red Cross blocked
The population’s anger is increasingly directed against them helper: Also on Thursday, dozens of residents blocked a Red Cross truck that was supposed to distribute food and water on the beach.
But above all, it is against the left-wing central government and Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez ranted. Because many Ceutíes feel let down by Madrid. It’s been almost a month since the mass rush on July 30th. Within a few hours, the population of the Spanish exclave in North Africa, where around 84,000 people live, had almost doubled. The vast majority of the mainly young Moroccans returned shortly afterwards via the El Tarajal border crossing. But thousands stayed – and have been sleeping in parks, on beaches or on the streets ever since.
Their exact number is still unclear. The regional government estimates there are up to 8,000 – in addition to the around 1,500 minors already registered. The central government in Madrid, however, spoke of around 5,000 people on Friday.
Tension is also growing among the newcomers. On Wednesday, violent clashes broke out between several dozen migrants at a food distribution. The police had to intervene with batons and tear gas. On Thursday night, around 30 to 40 young Moroccans who refuse to leave Spanish territory attacked a military vehicle with stones and sticks. Four soldiers were slightly injured and twelve people were arrested.
According to newspaper research ABC The Spanish police are investigating several Moroccan radicals who are said to have arrived in Ceuta as part of the mass arrival and are calling for violence on social networks. Their goal is to maintain pressure on the population and encourage more compatriots to cross the border.
Speed up the process
The central government in Madrid is now trying to speed up returns and asylum procedures. Additional police workstations were set up in the temporary reception center (CATE). To date, identification and registration have taken place primarily at police headquarters and at the border crossing with Morocco, with priority given to minors. Nevertheless, patience is still necessary, he recently emphasized Angel Victor Torreshead of the new central crisis committee. International treaties and Spanish court rulings prohibit collective deportations and require a case-by-case assessment.
Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska also announced that it would expand Ceuta’s border facilities. At the same time, he tried to defuse the situation verbally. In the House of Representatives in Madrid on Friday he called for “prudence and an end to all violence”. He particularly strongly condemned right-wing extremist groups that spoke of “hunting migrants” and described those who had arrived as “invaders”. He also attributes the escalation in Ceuta to the rhetoric of the opposition, which he accuses of fomenting hatred.
Call for protests
In fact, the far right party is mobilizing Vox already for nationwide protests: Under the motto “No to the invasion! Defend Ceuta, defend Spain!”, she is calling for rallies in front of town halls next Wednesday. Opposition leader Alberto Núñez Feijóo wants to take part in the rally in Madrid together with the leadership of his conservative People’s Party (PP).
In Ceuta itself, voices are also becoming louder warning of deep social divisions. “Because the government is not providing answers, neo-Nazis are using the situation to spread their hate messages – and they are reaching a lot of people,” warns Abdellah Mustafa, a neighborhood representative in Sidi Embarek, where hundreds of girls have been housed in a sports field with the help of residents. “Don’t let Ceuta break.”