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Ceuta surge and deaths
A migration surge into the Spanish enclave of Ceuta unfolded around the Tarajal border crossing, with the tide at Tarajal Beach on Thursday morning carrying “more than bodies” and leaving inner tubes, flippers, and discarded wetsuits on the sand.
“Nine people drowned before they reached shore.”
Türkiye Today described the crossings as thousands of young men splashing past the breakwater into Spanish territory, and it said “Nine people drowned before they reached shore.”
By evening, Madrid ordered the army into Ceuta and Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez was “just on a plane to Algeria,” as the crisis intensified.
El Español said the Thursday surge involved 60,000 people on Ceuta and Throne Day, and it described a “provisional balance” that included “at least nine confirmed dead whose bodies were recovered in Ceuta.”
Spain-Morocco blame and returns
Spain and Morocco agreed to return irregular migrants in Ceuta and Melilla “as soon as possible” in accordance with existing cooperation mechanisms, and Atalayar said the decision would apply to both enclaves.
Atalayar reported that Spanish Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska planned to travel to Ceuta to oversee the response, while it said the Spanish government denied the surge was linked to President Pedro Sánchez’s recent visit to Algeria on July 20.
El Español described the Moroccan pro-government press as arguing the crisis was “unsustainable” for Spain to maintain sovereignty over Ceuta and Melilla, and it said Le360 asked “how many human lives it will cost” to reintegrate the cities into Morocco.
In response to the legal constraints, El Independiente said the Supreme Court’s ruling of June 29 “sets limits” and that “Those who enter by swimming cannot be returned,” while Spain pointed to that as the cause.
Geopolitical stakes and pressure
Escudo Digital linked the Ceuta crisis to the anniversary of the enthronement of Mohamed VI and to U.S. reaffirmation of Moroccan sovereignty over the Sahara, while it also said Rabat was consolidating “with Tel Aviv.”
“570 minors under guardianship compared to 180 ten days ago”
It reported that Spain faced pressure on its southern border while Morocco had “never had so much support outside its borders,” and it quantified the immediate impact as “570 minors under guardianship compared to 180 ten days ago.”
The same source said the Spanish Supreme Court ruling issued on July 8 prevented hot returns for those who swim to Ceuta, reserving the mechanism only for those who jump the fence.
In parallel, El Español framed the crisis as a test of sovereignty, quoting Le360’s claim that “The central question is no longer whether these cities will reintegrate into their natural environment, Morocco, but when it will happen.”
