Ceuta border crisis toll hits 67 as Spain installs new sea barrier
Spain said 67 people died in the Ceuta border crisis after a mass crossing from Morocco. The toll and fresh barrier plans underline the human cost and the push for tighter controls.
Spain said on Saturday that the death toll in the Ceuta border crisis with Morocco had risen to 67, including people who drowned and others who were killed in a stampede while trying to cross a breakwater barrier. The crisis followed a mass breach of the frontier into the tiny Spanish territory in North Africa.
Authorities also announced a 500-metre-long containment barrier along the breakwater fence into the sea after about 60,000 migrants crossed into Ceuta between Thursday and Friday. Spain's interior ministry said most of those who entered have already returned to Morocco.
On Saturday morning, a handful of exhausted migrants who swam to Ceuta's urban Tarajal beach were met by soldiers, who escorted them back across the border. After days of chaos and streets crowded with people hoping for a better life in Spain, residents of Ceuta woke up to an uneasy calm.
Even so, life in the autonomous city of 84,000 had not returned to normal. "Life in this city has been disrupted as a result of the border incident," Ceuta President Juan Jesus Vivas said. "The return of people has begun satisfactorily, but the process must be completed," he said. "The city has not yet returned to normal."
Some migrants, however, remained in Ceuta. Among them was 23-year-old Moroccan Mohamed Hatri, who said, "They've closed everything down so that we can't buy anything to eat, to force us to return to our country." He added, "But even if they close it down we're round to stay here, whether we're hungry or not."
The border crisis in Ceuta left 67 people dead, brought tens of thousands across the frontier in two days, and prompted Spain to begin installing a new containment barrier as authorities continued returning migrants to Morocco.
With PTI Inputs
Spain said on Saturday that the death toll in the Ceuta border crisis with Morocco had risen to 67, including people who drowned and others who were killed in a stampede while trying to cross a breakwater barrier. The crisis followed a mass breach of the frontier into the tiny Spanish territory in North Africa.
Authorities also announced a 500-metre-long containment barrier along the breakwater fence into the sea after about 60,000 migrants crossed into Ceuta between Thursday and Friday. Spain's interior ministry said most of those who entered have already returned to Morocco.
On Saturday morning, a handful of exhausted migrants who swam to Ceuta's urban Tarajal beach were met by soldiers, who escorted them back across the border. After days of chaos and streets crowded with people hoping for a better life in Spain, residents of Ceuta woke up to an uneasy calm.
Even so, life in the autonomous city of 84,000 had not returned to normal. "Life in this city has been disrupted as a result of the border incident," Ceuta President Juan Jesus Vivas said. "The return of people has begun satisfactorily, but the process must be completed," he said. "The city has not yet returned to normal."
Some migrants, however, remained in Ceuta. Among them was 23-year-old Moroccan Mohamed Hatri, who said, "They've closed everything down so that we can't buy anything to eat, to force us to return to our country." He added, "But even if they close it down we're round to stay here, whether we're hungry or not."
The border crisis in Ceuta left 67 people dead, brought tens of thousands across the frontier in two days, and prompted Spain to begin installing a new containment barrier as authorities continued returning migrants to Morocco.
With PTI Inputs
Spain said on Saturday that the death toll in the Ceuta border crisis with Morocco had risen to 67, including people who drowned and others who were killed in a stampede while trying to cross a breakwater barrier. The crisis followed a mass breach of the frontier into the tiny Spanish territory in North Africa.
Authorities also announced a 500-metre-long containment barrier along the breakwater fence into the sea after about 60,000 migrants crossed into Ceuta between Thursday and Friday. Spain's interior ministry said most of those who entered have already returned to Morocco.
On Saturday morning, a handful of exhausted migrants who swam to Ceuta's urban Tarajal beach were met by soldiers, who escorted them back across the border. After days of chaos and streets crowded with people hoping for a better life in Spain, residents of Ceuta woke up to an uneasy calm.
Even so, life in the autonomous city of 84,000 had not returned to normal. "Life in this city has been disrupted as a result of the border incident," Ceuta President Juan Jesus Vivas said. "The return of people has begun satisfactorily, but the process must be completed," he said. "The city has not yet returned to normal."
Some migrants, however, remained in Ceuta. Among them was 23-year-old Moroccan Mohamed Hatri, who said, "They've closed everything down so that we can't buy anything to eat, to force us to return to our country." He added, "But even if they close it down we're round to stay here, whether we're hungry or not."
The border crisis in Ceuta left 67 people dead, brought tens of thousands across the frontier in two days, and prompted Spain to begin installing a new containment barrier as authorities continued returning migrants to Morocco.
With PTI Inputs
