50,000 Migrants Enter Ceuta; 34 Killed in Border Clashes
Spain's Interior Ministry said that around 50,000 migrants crossed into Ceuta, Spain's enclave in North Africa, by land and sea since Thursday
50,000 Migrants Enter Ceuta; 34 Killed in Border Clashes
Spain's Interior Ministry said that around 50,000 migrants crossed into Ceuta, Spain's enclave in North Africa, by land and sea since Thursday.
About 25,000 migrants have already returned voluntarily, the ministry added.
Moroccan security forces used batons and tear gas to push back crowds at the gates of Ceuta in an effort to stop more people from entering the small Spanish territory that extends into the Mediterranean from Morocco.
Juan Jesús Vivas, the head of Ceuta's local government, said that as many as 60,000 people had crossed the border and 34 people had died. Earlier, Spanish authorities reported that 19 bodies had been recovered from the water.
The mass border crossing has sparked divisions across Europe, with leaders of other European Union (EU) member states urging Spain to contain the situation.
Right-wing parties across the continent blamed the incident on Spain's comparatively lenient migration policies, including an amnesty granted to hundreds of thousands of undocumented migrants earlier this year.
France said it was stepping up border checks with Spain, while Italy threatened to seek Spain's suspension from the Schengen Area, the EU's passport-free travel zone.
