At least 18 die after breach of border between Morocco and Spanish
territory of Ceuta
[July 31, 2026]
By SERGIO RODRIGUEZ RUÍZ, ANTONIO SEMPERE and SUMAN
NAISHADHAM
CEUTA, Spain (AP) — At least 18 migrants have died trying to reach the
Spanish territory of Ceuta after thousands of people breached the
frontier with Morocco and poured in.
The border crisis boiled over Thursday and overnight. Spain's state
broadcaster RTVE broadcast images of burned cars on the Moroccan side of
the border after reported clashes.
Rachid Sbihi, who leads a local workers association representing Civil
Guard officers called the situation a “serious humanitarian crisis,"
saying thousands of migrants, including unaccompanied children, were
left sleeping in parks and sidewalks, while others roamed the streets
aimlessly.
“People are still entering. The reinforcements that have arrived are
only helping the injured and other humanitarian efforts,” he said. "It’s
chaotic.”
Among the 18 who died, many drowned, Sbihi said, but some were also
killed in a stampede to cross the breakwater fence at Tarajal beach, an
urban beach near a border checkpoint with Morocco.
Ahmed Karim, a 33-year old Moroccan, said he had crossed into Ceuta
because of the lack of jobs in his country.
“Many people want to go to Europe, America, but they don’t have the
opportunity,” Karim said.
On Friday morning, the waters near the border fence were littered with
buoys as crowds of mostly young men were amassed near the crossing.
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez is expected to join Interior
Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska in a visit to Ceuta on Friday morning.
French Interior Minister Laurent Nunez said France would strengthen
border checks with Spain, writing on X that he had activated the Rapid
Intervention Border Force.
Video footage on Thursday showed throngs of people, mainly Moroccans,
walking around the breakwaters onto local roads. While most appeared to
be young men, there were also families with women and small children.
Some migrants were also attempting to return to Morocco, according to a
freelance photographer working for The Associated Press.
Moroccan authorities have not publicly commented on the crossings, and
Morocco’s Interior Ministry did not respond to requests for comment.
It was not immediately clear what prompted so many people to cross to
Ceuta.
Spain is a main point of arrival into Europe for migrants seeking better
economic opportunities or an escape from violence in their home
countries.
To reach Ceuta, located on the northern African coast, migrants often
swim from the Moroccan town of Fnideq, covering about 3 miles (5
kilometers) to reach Spanish territory. Others attempt the crossing from
the nearby town of Belyounech, where the distance is shorter.
Migrants cross into another Spanish exclave
Migrants from Morocco also attempted to cross into Melilla, Spain’s
other territory at the tip of North Africa.
There was widespread chaos in Bni Nsar, the Moroccan town bordering the
Spanish territory, where migrants clashed with police, throwing rocks
and setting police vehicles ablaze, according to local media and rights
groups. They reported injuries among security forces and the arrest of
dozens of people attempting to cross.
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Migrants try to cross from Morocco into the Spanish enclave of
Ceuta, Friday, July 31, 2026. (AP Photo/Antonio Sempere)
Omar Naji of the local branch of the Moroccan Association of Human
Rights, who regularly monitors migration attempts and helps families
identify bodies, told the AP that attempts to cross into Melilla had
already been recorded in recent weeks. However, the latest surge
appeared to have been driven by the situation in Ceuta.
Like Ceuta, Melilla is a Spanish autonomous city on the North
African coast. Many Moroccans consider both cities to be occupied
territory.
Migrants often try to enter Melilla by scaling the 19-foot (6-meter)
fence separating the enclave from Morocco. In 2022, thousands of
sub-Saharan migrants attempted to cross the border that way, and
dozens died in one of the deadliest such incidents on the route.
Arrivals had been increasing, but reasons are still unclear
The escalation at the frontier between Spain and Morocco comes after
a surge in migrants attempting to reach the small exclave, mainly by
swimming, on Wednesday.
Ceuta authorities had previously linked the surge to a Spanish
Supreme Court ruling earlier this month that barred authorities from
immediately returning migrants who arrive by sea without due
process. The ruling does not apply to migrants who enter Spain by
land, including by climbing over the border fence.
But some activists in Morocco expressed doubt that the ruling was
behind the surge, arguing most migrants would have been unaware of
such legal decisions.
Ceuta authorities ask Madrid to declare emergency, send army
Juan Jesús Vivas, the head of Ceuta’s regional government, had
called for the national government to declare an emergency on
grounds of national security, asking for more police and for the
army to be deployed on the border “to guarantee the inviolability of
the frontier and citizen safety.”
He had warned that migrant reception centers were already
overwhelmed on Wednesday, with hundreds of people sleeping on the
streets. Thousands or even tens of thousands are believed to have
arrived since then.
Spain’s Interior Ministry, which tracks irregular migration, would
not confirm the number of migrants who had made it to Ceuta in the
past few days but said it would publish its next migration report on
Monday.
Legislation covering a declaration of national emergencies does not
consider migration flows as a risk to national security, according
to the ministry, which said government agencies are “coordinating to
respond with speed and efficacy to the situation in Ceuta.”
Ceuta, which is perched on a historical isthmus, has been a Spanish
possession since 1580. Its mixed population of Christians and
Muslims, Spanish and Moroccan residents and day workers, lives in
relative harmony behind a border fence that many desperate migrants
from across Africa attempt to cross for a better life in Europe.
——
Naishadham reported from Madrid. AP journalists Renata Brito in
Barcelona, Spain, and Akram Oubachir in Casablanca, Morocco,
contributed.
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