Morocco arrests 111 migrants headed to Spain's Ceuta as sides step up crackdown
Moroccan police arrested at least 111 people on Saturday as they tried to enter Spain's North African enclave of Ceuta, amid tightened security on both sides of the border after social media posts called for another mass migrant crossing.
Hundreds of migrants have been apprehended at the border between Morocco and Spain. According to ABC News AU, 111 people were arrested by Moroccan police as they tried to enter Spain's North African enclave of Ceuta. The arrests were made amid tightened security on both sides of the border after social media posts called for another mass migrant crossing.
The attempted crossing came two weeks after a mass surge of over 72,000 migrants into Ceuta, which sparked tensions within the European Union and fueled anti-immigration rhetoric among far-right parties worldwide. At least 96 people died in the previous attempt to reach European soil. Those detained included 109 migrants from sub-Saharan Africa and two Moroccan citizens arrested in or around Fnideq, the Moroccan city opposite Ceuta, according to a source in Morocco's Interior Ministry.
Moroccan police used tear gas to disperse groups of migrants gathered on hills about 3km from the border, EFE reported. In Ceuta, Spanish soldiers guarded supermarkets while police heavily patrolled the enclave's main streets. The city was calmer than in the days after the deadly crossing attempt.
Brief written by urgent.news from The Age, The Sydney Morning Herald, ABC News AU, Jerusalem Post, Dawn — 5 reports on this story. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
