Spain deploys military in Ceuta after thousands cross from Morocco

Spain is deploying the military to Ceuta after thousands of migrants entered from Morocco. The move underlines a renewed border emergency as local services buckle and returns are being planned.Spain said on Thursday that it would deploy the military to help restore order at its border with Morocco in Ceuta after thousands of migrants entered the small Spanish territory. The move came after authorities in Ceuta asked the central government in Madrid for reinforcements as a border crisis worsened and large crowds breached the border fence.In a statement on Thursday evening, Spain's government said it would send the Armed Forces to help the Civil Guard "to maintain security in the city of Ceuta". Fernando Grande-Marlaska, Spain's interior minister, is due to travel to Ceuta on Friday to assess the situation.Rachid Sbihi, head of the association representing Spain's Civil Guard officers in Ceuta, said, "The situation is absolute chaos." He added, "It's not possible to give precise numbers, but there are thousands of migrants crossing," and said the border had "totally collapsed". Achraf Maimouni of the Moroccan Association for Human Rights in northern Morocco described the situation as "exceptional" and said, "The Tarajal border was opened under unusual circumstances this morning and people crossed." Video footage showed crowds, mainly Moroccans, walking around the breakwaters at Tarajal beach and onto local roads. Most appeared to be young men, though families with women and small children were also seen. Some shouted, "Viva Espana!" to a freelance photographer working for The Associated Press.The reason for the sudden rise in crossings was not immediately clear. The escalation followed a surge on Wednesday in migrants trying to reach Ceuta, mainly by swimming. Sbihi and activists in both Morocco and Ceuta said at least three people died on Wednesday while trying to reach the territory by sea. Moroccan authorities had not publicly commented on the crossings, and the interior ministry did not respond to requests for comment. Spain's Interior Ministry said the Moroccan government was "closely cooperating" with Spain and that Moroccan police were stopping "numerous people" trying to cross the border. It said both countries had agreed to work together "for the return, as soon as possible, of all the people who entered Ceuta illegally." Earlier, Ceuta's regional government chief Juan Jesus Vivas asked Madrid to declare a national emergency on national security grounds and send more police and the army to the border. He said extra police and soldiers were needed "to guarantee the inviolability of the frontier and citizen safety". Vivas had warned on Wednesday that migrant reception centres were overwhelmed, with hundreds of people sleeping on the streets after more than 1,500 migrants entered the territory in the past week. Thousands more crossed overnight and on Thursday. Spain's interior ministry, however, said it could not declare a national emergency over migration concerns because the law does not treat migration flows as a national security risk. It added that administrations were "coordinating to respond with speed and efficacy to the situation in Ceuta." The ministry did not confirm how many migrants had reached Ceuta in recent days, but said its next migration report would be published on August 3. Ministry figures showed that by July 15, nearly 3,000 migrants had entered Ceuta by land or sea this year.Ceuta authorities had earlier linked the jump in arrivals to a Spanish Supreme Court ruling this month that migrants arriving by sea cannot be immediately pushed back across the border without due process, unlike those who enter by land, such as by climbing the border fence. But some activists in Morocco doubted that the ruling was behind the increase, saying most migrants were unlikely to know about such legal decisions. Migrants trying to reach Ceuta often swim from the Moroccan town of Fnideq, a journey of about five kilometres, while others attempt the shorter route from nearby Belyounech. The scenes recalled the May 2021 crisis, when more than 8,000 migrants entered Ceuta in two days. At that time, Morocco was accused of easing border controls after Spain allowed Polisario Front leader Brahim Ghali to receive medical treatment, triggering a diplomatic crisis. Thursday's developments left Ceuta once again facing a major border emergency as Spain moved troops in to support police and restore order. With PTI Inputs- EndsPublished By: India Today Web Desk Published On: Jul 31, 2026 01:06 IST