- Ceuta protesters clashed with police, camp set ablaze Thursday.
- Locals opposed Red Cross aid, demanded migrants leave Ceuta.
- Thousands of migrants remain; government faces increasing political pressure.
Reported by: Andreas Illmer with AFP, DPA | Edited by: Sean Sinico
Protesters in Ceuta set fire to a migrant camp and clashed with police on Thursday. The unrest comes one month after a mass influx of migrants from Morocco to the Spanish enclave in North Africa.
Footage on Spanish television showed a group of demonstrators on a beach, throwing objects into the fire. Police pushed the protesters back while the migrants retreated to a pier.
Earlier on Thursday, a military vehicle was attacked with stones and other objects by about 70 people, a police spokesman in Ceuta told the AFP news agency.
Local protesters tried to stop Red Cross vehicles from reaching the beach to distribute food to migrants. People waving Spanish flags shouted “They should leave” and “Out with the Red Cross.”
How many migrants are still in Ceuta?
In July, more than 70,000 migrants entered Ceuta irregularly in the hope of reaching the European mainland.
While the vast majority of them have since returned to Morocco, several thousand remain in Ceuta, living on the streets or on the beach.
Spain’s government in Madrid puts the number at below 7,000 while Ceuta officials say it’s at least 10,000. Ceuta’s population is about 84,000 people.
Growing pressure on Madrid
The Spanish government is under growing pressure over the situation in Ceuta. The conservative opposition is accusing left-wing Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez of failing to act and abandoning Ceuta’s residents.
Madrid has recently moved to speed up efforts to identify the migrants and decide who will be sent back to Morocco. The government also approved extra funding to help unaccompanied minors entitled to special protection.
The crisis comes ahead of general elections next year and has deepened political divisions in Spain. The conservative opposition is calling for a tougher stance on migration.
The mass influx in July had also led to tension within the EU over how to respond to the situation in Ceuta.
Disclaimer: This report first appeared on Deutsche Welle, and has been republished on ABP Live as part of a special arrangement. Apart from the headline, no changes have been made in the report by ABP Live.
