Border Wait Times Plummet for Moroccan Diaspora Entering from Spain

The flow of MREs was particularly high last weekend, reaching "a historic record," according to the government delegation in Sebta. In total, 10,200 vehicles and 40,000 MREs entered the autonomous city from Algeciras and headed to Morocco between Friday and Sunday, an increase of 128% for MREs and 181% for vehicles compared to 2019, the last year the Marhaba Operation was organized.

The slowness noted at the Tarajal border is due to the "strict" documentary and health checks carried out on both sides of the border, explained the government delegation, stressing that traffic remained "between 100 and 150 cars per hour".

To cope with the massive traffic jam recorded in the waiting area in recent days, the president of the city, Juan Vivas, implemented several measures on Monday. Thus, water packs and food were distributed to the MREs, and a Red Cross unit as well as private security agents were deployed on site where tarpaulins will also be installed to fight the heat.

According to the authorities, the influx is high in Sebta due to the low prices applied by the shipping company serving the Algeciras-Sebta maritime route (around 170 euros per vehicle with one passenger) compared to those charged for direct links with Tanger Med (around 360 euros). Added to this is the celebration of Eid al-Adha scheduled for next Sunday in Morocco.