Thousands of migrants still in Ceuta after border crisis, local leader says

The exclave of Ceuta in Spain, home to between 3,000 and 5,000 migrants, is still reeling from a recent border crisis sparked by a surge in arrivals from Morocco. Juan Jesús Vivas, the leader of Ceuta, expressed deep sorrow over the tragic loss of 100 lives following the arrival of around 78,000 migrants in a matter of hours last week.

The EU Commission has praised Spain's rapid response to the crisis, which has involved deploying armed forces to Ceuta and Melilla, another Spanish African territory. However, the situation has created tensions among EU nations sharing open borders and sparked criticism of the Spanish government for its handling of the issue. Vivas criticized the national government's response, stating that it was late and insufficient.

Despite the return of nearly 75,000 migrants to Morocco, Ceuta continues to face a humanitarian emergency and disturbances to public order. Spanish officials have allocated €25m to assist minors in Ceuta, but 4,860 migrant children have been registered by volunteer groups, double the official estimates. Spain's interior minister has allocated funds for this purpose, though no minors have been moved to mainland Spain yet.

The incident has raised questions about why tens of thousands of migrants attempted to cross into Ceuta and sparked concerns about potential future incidents. Morocco has blamed the crisis on Spain's Supreme Court ruling that migrants stopped at sea cannot be returned to Morocco. EU nations have also been divided on how to respond to the situation.