Free Republic

Spain's North African enclave of Ceuta is experiencing a humanitarian and security emergency after 1,500 migrants reached the city by swimming across from Morocco ​over the past week, the territory's leader said on Thursday. Ceuta, together with ‌Melilla - another Spanish autonomous city located in North Africa - represents the European Union's only land border with Africa. Both cities periodically experience surges in attempted crossings by migrants seeking to reach ​Europe. Speaking in separate interviews with radio stations Cadena SER and Onda Cero, ​Juan Jesus Vivas said the recent influx had overwhelmed the city's ⁠reception system and left hundreds of...

Hundreds of migrants have crossed into the Spanish enclave of Ceuta by sea in recent days, exposing renewed pressure on one of the European Union’s most politically sensitive external borders and raising fresh questions about migration management between Spain and Morocco. Local authorities say more than 1,500 migrants, including adults and unaccompanied children, have reached the North African territory over the past few days, with arrivals exceeding 200 people a day. Television footage showed migrants swimming around border barriers before running into the town after reaching shore. Juan Jesus Vivas, president of Ceuta, described the situation as a “total humanitarian...