Moroccan Forces Dismantle Migrant Camp Near Melilla Border

These migrants, in groups of about thirty, are moving from Casablanca to towns like Berkane and Oujda, 80 and 130 kilometers east of Nador, and trying to enter Melilla, security sources told EFE, recalling the last assault by migrants (about 2,000) on Melilla, which occurred on June 24 and in which at least 23 migrants died.

According to the same sources, the migrants avoid going directly to Nador, the border town of Melilla, to divert the attention of the authorities, and then continue their journey on foot or by private transport to the outskirts of the autonomous city with the help of "Sudanese guides" who know the region.

With the vigilance of the Moroccan authorities, some 5,000 migrants have been prevented from entering Melilla. They have been sent back to the cities of the center and west of the kingdom. Between Friday and Saturday, dozens of Sudanese migrants returned to Mount Gourougou, near Melilla, from where they were driven out by the Moroccan security forces.

During the operation, four Moroccan agents were injured by stones thrown by the migrants. The riot police were called in as reinforcements to disperse the hundred or so migrants gathered at that location.