Moroccan Teens Ready To Give Up Everything To Reach Europe

Fnideq, Morocco, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 20th May, 2021 ) :Moroccan high school student Mohamed, 17, dropped everything -- his studies, his final exams, even his family -- to try to reach the Spanish enclave of Ceuta, like countless other youngsters who see no future in the North African country.

Since Monday, more than 8,000 would-be migrants, many of them unaccompanied minors, have managed to scramble, wade or swim across the border in search of a better life in Europe.

Most have been sent straight back by the Spanish authorities, who have been angered by the blind eye turned by Moroccan border guards as the youngsters streamed across to the tiny enclave of 84,000 people.

But with already limited job prospects for school leavers greatly reduced by the Covid pandemic, many of the young returnees are determined to try again, and there are thousands more eager to follow in their footsteps.

Youth unemployment in Moroccan cities reached 40 percent last year, according to official figures, and many young people barely get by doing odd jobs.

Abdellah, 16, was sent back to Morocco by the Spanish authorities on Tuesday.

"My mother hasn't stopped ringing me to beg me to return home, but adventure holds no fear for me," he said.

The teenager, who said he dropped out of school two years ago and has been getting by working in a mechanic's workshop in Tangier, said he has enough money to stay a few more days in the Moroccan border town of Fnideq and intends to try his luck again getting across.

His friend Hassan, 17, said he had decided to go home to Tangiers for now. He still dreams of living in Europe but doesn't want to take the risk of setting off right away.

"One day, I'll try my luck again and I'll make it."Others travelled to Fnideq from further afield after hearing news of this week's mass crossing.

"I have no future here. I want to work to help my family," said Mohammed, who arrived in the border town on Wednesday after a long journey on foot.