Spain sends army as 5,000 migrants reach Ceuta

Spain has deployed troops to Ceuta to patrol the border with Morocco after thousands of migrants swam into the northern African enclave amid heightened diplomatic tensions, Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska said on Tuesday.

Footage from local Faro TV channel showed soldiers in armored vehicles guarding the enclave’s beach as dozens of migrants emerged from the water while hundreds of potential migrants stood on the Moroccan side of the fence between the enclave and Morocco.

Soldiers started patrolling the border along with Spanish police, Grande-Marlaska told state broadcaster TVE. As many as 6,000 Moroccans, including about 1,500 minors, swam into Ceuta on Monday (May 17) and Tuesday (May 18), he said.

A spokesman for Ceuta’s government delegation said soldiers will also work with police in sensitive locations within the enclave to maintain order on the streets.

One person died in Monday’s crossing, the spokesman said.

via Reuters