Moroccan Authorities Thwart 50 Migrants’ Attempt to Swim into Spanish Enclave Ceuta

The migrants, including minors, wanted to take advantage of the fog and the fact that the Moroccan agents were busy checking the many vehicles of Moroccans living abroad as part of the return phase of the Marhaba Operation, to cross the border by swimming. But their plan failed and they were arrested by the Moroccan authorities, reports El Pueblo de Ceuta.

According to the latest bi-weekly report published by the Spanish Ministry of the Interior, only 57 migrants arrived in Ceuta on 11 boats during the first seven months of 2022, compared to 588 migrants on 122 boats in 2021, a decrease of 90.3% and 91% respectively, even though it is true that attempts by migrants from Morocco to enter Ceuta illegally by jet ski, swimming or by boat increase during the summer season.

On the other hand, the migratory flow by land has increased in Ceuta during the same period, from 401 migrants last year to 641 this year, an increase of 59.9%.