Spain is conducting mass deportations from its North African enclave of Ceuta, with authorities stating that approximately half of the 60,000 migrants who entered the territory on Thursday have been sent back to Morocco. Officials claim to be expelling migrants at a rate of 150 people per minute.
The enclave, which has a population of about 85,000, was overwhelmed by the sudden influx, which nearly doubled its population and strained local police and national forces. An army deployment was also called in to assist.
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez described the mass entry as an "attack" and a "violation of Spain's territorial integrity." He stated that Ceuta is a Spanish city and condemned the events as "deplorable."
In response, Spain has increased its military presence in Ceuta, deploying additional troops, divers, and maritime service vessels. The government is also reinforcing the border with a new physical barrier and is reportedly working to modify existing laws to expedite the repatriation of irregular migrants.
Sánchez attributed the surge to "human trafficking mafias" who he claims are exploiting a recent Spanish Supreme Court ruling. The ruling stated that migrants intercepted at sea attempting to reach Ceuta or Melilla, another Spanish autonomous city on the Moroccan coast, cannot be expelled under the enclaves' special border-rejection regime.
Many of the migrants who entered Ceuta were reportedly Moroccan men of military age. Some arrived with few possessions, and public spaces in the enclave were reportedly used as makeshift toilets by the new arrivals.