Spain calls for calm after anti-migrant protesters clash with cops

MADRID: Spain's interior minister urged for a peaceful resolution and an end to violence on Friday following confrontations between protesters and police in Ceuta. The clashes erupted during demonstrations against migrants who remained in the North African enclave after a large influx from Morocco in July. Despite most migrants leaving since then, thousands continue to live in the city, sleeping on beaches.

Tensions have escalated in recent days, leading to confrontations at a beach where migrants have been staying, with some belongings burned and a soldier injured when stones were thrown at troops. Twelve Moroccan migrants were arrested, and two more were detained after attacking a police officer. Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska called for calm and condemned any form of violence, emphasizing that it is not the solution to the complex issues Ceuta faces.

The local government head, Juan Vivas, supported peaceful protests demanding normality but warned authorities would act against anyone committing vandalism. Right-wing and far-right parties have called for the removal of all migrants, which the minister denounced as inciting hatred and confrontation. The government stated each individual must be identified to determine their eligibility for asylum or deportation, with special protection for unaccompanied migrant children.

The interior ministry sought assistance from the European Union Agency for Asylum and the EU border agency Frontex to manage the asylum process. Spain's foreign minister, Jose Luis Albares, described Ceuta and Melilla's land border with Africa as the most unequal and complex border in the world to manage, requesting solidarity with the two territories.