The sudden arrival of 60,000 Moroccan migrants sparked a humanitarian crisis on the shores of Ceuta, a small territory in Spain.
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“The situation that Ceuta is going through is absolutely unsustainable,” Ceuta President Juan Jesús said, according to the Associated Press.
At least 41 died while attempting to reach the Spanish shores, likely swimming more than 3 miles according to figures reported by AP. Those that arrived didn’t fare much better, and were often left sleeping on sidewalks or roaming the streets.
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez described the border breach as “a violation of Spain’s territorial integrity.”
Both Spain and Moroccan military forces were deployed to secure borders on both sides of the sea. Video footage from early Friday showed Moroccan officials dispersing crowds of migrants using tear gas. Moroccan police even resorted to firing warning shots with water cannons to prevent migrants from crossing into Ceuta.
Some migrants were killed in a stampede at Tarajal beach, a border checkpoint located on the southern tip of Ceuta. The nearby waters were littered with shoes, buoys and other abandoned personal belongings, AP reports.
According to Spanish authorities, the surge of migrants may be linked to a recent decision by Spain’s Supreme Court which ruled that unlike migrants who arrive to Spain by land, migrants who come through the sea could not be summarily deported.
“It appears that this interpretation of the Supreme Court’s ruling spread like wildfire over the past few hours through the networks of human trafficking organizations, triggering the kind of mass surge we witnessed yesterday,” Sánchez said.
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Some activists in Morocco doubt the Supreme Court ruling was the immediate cause, saying that most migrants would not have been aware of the decision.
Spain is a common destination for migrants searching out economic opportunity or escaping violence in their home countries, AP reports.
“There’s nothing at home,” Abdulah Buji, a 21-year-old from Tetouan, told AP. “I’d have to work 12-hour shift for a meager wage. That’s why I came here.”
“But I haven’t found any opportunities here either, so I have to go back,” Buji continued.”
Migrants arriving from Morocco are mostly young men and some families with women and children.
Roughly half of the Moroccan migrants have voluntarily returned to their home country, the Spanish government said. Departures are occurring at an approximate rate of 150 people per minute.
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