EU races to contain new migrant crisis as thousands cross into Spain’s Ceuta

People gather at Bab Sebta, on the Morocco-Spain border near Spain's enclave of Ceuta and the Moroccan town of Fnideq, on July 30, 2026. Photo by Abdelmajid BZIOUAT/AFP via Getty Images

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The European Union on Friday scrambled to contain one of the largest migrant crises faced by the bloc in recent years, after tens of thousands of people poured into Spain’s enclave in north Africa in just days.

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Some 60,000 migrants have crossed into the territory from Morocco, the local regional president Juan Jesus Vivas told reporters. Many swam around a small border barrier that juts out into the Mediterranean Sea, with 34 people dying in the attempt.

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The sudden massive influx has sparked an international crisis for Spain’s government, drawing criticism from Germany, Italy and Finland and prompting France to tighten checks on its border with Spain.

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Madrid has sent troops, more police, including divers, drones and boats, to boost security in Ceuta. Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez and his interior minister rushed to the enclave on Friday.

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On Friday, Spain’s interior minister said that 25,000 people who had crossed had voluntarily returned to Morocco.

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AFP reporters have seen hundreds of people — men, women and children — entering Ceuta, discarding flotation rings and clothes used in the risky passage.

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Hundreds of migrants converged on Morocco’s northern town of Fnideq on July 30 evening, following rumours that the border with Spain’s Ceuta had opened. Photo by Lucía DIAZ/AFP via Getty Images

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On Friday, hundreds of migrants, mostly young men, were hanging around on the Morocco side of the border while others were seen turning back, saying “there are too many people here.”

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“It’s catastrophic,” said Mohammed, a local taxi driver and Ceuta resident. “Sure, we sympathize with them — they’re having a terrible time in their own country, and all that — but this isn’t the way to enter a place, nor is it a way to live.”

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It was not immediately clear what prompted this surge of migrants from Morocco. Some previous surges have occurred during tensions between Spain and Morocco.

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