Holidaymakers on a Spanish beach witnessed the arrival of a crowded migrant boat, with dozens of men disembarking and disappearing into the area before police could respond.
The vessel landed at Cala del Barco, a cove adjacent to the La Manga Club resort on Spain's Costa Calida, prompting shock among sunbathers. Witnesses reported hearing cheers from the men as they reached the shore and then quickly leaving the boat, which then departed.
One woman described the scene as "surreal" and exclaimed, "It's a f*****g patera," referring to the flat-bottomed boats often used for irregular migrant crossings. She and others were seen gathering their belongings and moving away from the water's edge.
An estimated 60 people were on board the vessel, described as mostly North African men in their late teens and twenties. Police were alerted by emergency calls from beachgoers but arrived after the migrants had already left the scene.
Local politicians expressed anger and concern over the incident. Francisco Bernabe, a former mayor of La Union, questioned the effectiveness of surveillance systems, asking on social media, "How is it possible that a boat of that size was not detected by the surveillance radar?" He added, "Extremely serious."
Noelia Arroyo, the mayoress of Cartagena, which includes Cala del Barco, stated that such landings "cannot be normalized" and that "human trafficking mafias" should not find it so easy to reach Spanish shores. She raised questions about the control of maritime borders if a boat can arrive, disembark in plain sight, and then leave.
Government officials have not yet provided information on the number of migrants who successfully crossed or how many have been located.
The incident occurred as the Spanish government navigated a policy shift regarding migrant children who had crossed into Ceuta, Spain's North African enclave. Initially stating that those minors would be sent back to Morocco, the coalition government later announced it would allow 500 minors to relocate to the mainland, a decision that drew criticism from opposition parties. This followed a large influx of migrants into Ceuta in late July, with thousands remaining and many setting up camps, prompting a security operation by police to clear a beach.