Ceuta migrants: 37,500 returned to Morocco, Spain says

Spain said more than 37,500 migrants have returned to Morocco from Ceuta after a large influx into the Spanish North African enclave.

Ceuta's regional president Juan Jesus Vivas had estimated that 60,000 migrants entered the territory over two or three days. The figure is large for Ceuta, which has a population of about 80,000.

The influx also exceeds the May 2021 arrivals, when about 12,000 migrants entered Ceuta over several days, according to the Ceuta and Melilla Observatory.

Ignacio Cembrero, a journalist who specialises in migration in North Africa, said about 200 migrants were arriving every minute. He said it appeared since Wednesday that Moroccan security forces had not stopped people reaching the breakwater that marks the border between Ceuta and Morocco.

Analysts cited several possible explanations for the influx. Cembrero said a July 8 Spanish Supreme Court ruling on immediate returns after sea arrivals had played a role, but did not explain the level of mobilisation.