Hundreds of migrants stranded in Spain’s North African enclave of Ceuta protested on a city beach, demanding asylum as authorities say most who entered irregularly will be returned to Morocco.
Hundreds of migrants stranded in Spain’s North African enclave of Ceuta took to a popular beach on Sunday, calling on authorities to grant them asylum and allow them to remain in Spain rather than return them to Morocco.
The protesters are among thousands who remain in the territory after a mass border crossing two weeks ago. More than 72,000 people entered Ceuta during the surge, although most subsequently returned voluntarily. Estimates suggest between 5,000 and 8,000 migrants are still in the enclave.
With local facilities under severe pressure, many of those remaining have been sleeping in makeshift conditions around El Trampolin beach and on the outskirts of the city while waiting for an opportunity to reach mainland Europe.
Carrying Spanish flags and placards reading “We don’t want to go back to Morocco” and “We are also human”, protesters chanted for authorities to find a solution. Some migrants washed clothes along the shoreline, while others attempted to fish using makeshift equipment.
Earlier this week, Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska said migrants who had entered irregularly would not be allowed to stay in the enclave, travel to mainland Spain or obtain legal status, except in rare cases involving extreme vulnerability.
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The head of Ceuta’s medical board, Enrique Roviralta, told Onda Cero radio that the city’s limited healthcare workers were exhausted and criticised what he described as a slow response by the central government.
Roviralta added that diseases such as infectious diarrhoea and scabies were breaking out, and violence-related injuries such as broken noses or stab wounds were rising.
On Sunday, Health Minister Monica Garcia rejected suggestions that local health services had ”collapsed”, but acknowledged they were under pressure.
”To associate migration with illness is unjust and xenophobic,” she told reporters in Ceuta, adding there was a moderate risk of epidemic outbreaks for migrants and a low one for residents.
Most of the Moroccan migrants interviewed by Reuters said they were driven by poor working conditions in their country, despite many holding higher qualifications.
Mohammed Ouanzar, a 39-year-old automation specialist from Fez, said average monthly salaries of 3,000 dirham ($324) made it impossible for him to buy a home or start a family.
”Once I reached Spanish soil, I felt like I was born again,” he said. ”I’d rather die than return.”
Hicham Chikir, 25, said most people were eager to work in Europe. ”If anyone is bad, the police can send them back,” he added.
Emmanuel, a 30-year-old electrician who fled conflict-ridden northeastern Nigeria, said he decided to embark on a perilous four-month journey across Niger, Algeria and Morocco because his children had stopped going to school over fears of being kidnapped.
”I’m fighting for a better life for them,” he said, adding that he would take any job he was offered.
Mohammad Ismail Hossain, 34, left Bangladesh over two years ago following the 2024 mass uprising. He traversed India, Pakistan, Iraq, Syria, Egypt, Libya and Algeria – mostly on foot – and saw many companions die of thirst in the desert.
Ousmane from southern Senegal said he was seeking asylum because he suffered persecution over his sexual orientation but had yet to obtain a reply from the local NGOs he had contacted.
”The worst thing is waiting all day with nothing to do, checking my emails constantly” he said.
With inputs from agencies