Spain urged to declare ‘national emergency’ after thousands of migrants cross border
Spain has been urged to declare a national emergency after thousands of migrants cross from the Morocco, prompting calls for authorities to send in the army to take back control
Thousands of migrants have arrived in a Spanish territory after swimming and wading over the border from Morocco. Scenes from the beach of the tiny Spanish territory of Ceuta have gone viral on social media showing mostly young men crossing the border today (July 30).
Local officials are now calling on Spain to declare a national emergency and send the army to restore order to the frontier. Spain’s interior ministry said it would guarantee the safety of citizens and the integrity of the nation’s border, but that the government could not declare a national emergency over migration concerns.
Video footage showed crowds of people, mainly Moroccans, walking around the breakwaters at Tarajal beach onto local roads.
Thousands of migrants cross from Morocco into the Spanish enclave of Ceuta(Image: AP Photo/Antonio Sempere)
While the majority appeared to be young men, there were also families with women and children. “Viva Espana!” was shouted as reported by a freelance photographer working for US media agency The Associated Press.
Spain is a main point of arrival into Europe for migrants seeking better economic opportunities or an escape from violence in their home countries.
The escalation at the border between Spain and Morocco comes after a surge in migrants attempting to reach the small exclave, mainly by swimming.
Most of the migrants were seen swimming across the border(Image: Reduan Dris/EPA/Shutterstock)
The scenes of people streaming across the frontier recall the border crisis of May 2021 when more than 8,000 migrants poured into Ceuta in just two days.
Juan Jesus Vivas, the head of Ceuta’s regional government, called for the national government to declare a national emergency on grounds of national security, asking for more police and for the army to be deployed on the border.
Vivas said the additional police and soldiers would be necessary “to guarantee the inviolability of the frontier and citizen safety.”
Some of the migrants were heard shouting ‘Viva Espana’(Image: Reduan Dris/EPA/Shutterstock)
He had warned on Wednesday that migrant reception centers were overwhelmed with hundreds of people sleeping on the streets.
The interior ministry said that legislation covering a declaration of national emergencies does not consider migration flows as a risk to national security.
Government administrations are “coordinating to respond with speed and efficacy to the situation in Ceuta,” it said.
Spanish police officers were on the scene as migrants ran from the border(Image: AP Photo/Antonio Sempere)
The ministry said the Moroccan government was “closely cooperating” with Spain to handle the situation, saying that Moroccan police are stopping “numerous people” who are trying to cross the border.
Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska will travel to Ceuta, located on the northern African coast, on Friday to evaluate the situation.
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