Thirty Migrants Reach Spain's Melilla Enclave From Morocco

Thirty men from Morocco made it over a border fence to reach the Spanish enclave of Melilla overnight, authorities there said Friday, after a record number of migrants made it to Spain's other North African territory earlier in the week

Madrid, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 21st May, 2021 ) :Thirty men from Morocco made it over a border fence to reach the Spanish enclave of Melilla overnight, authorities there said Friday, after a record number of migrants made it to Spain's other North African territory earlier in the week.

More than 8,000 migrants swam or used small inflatable boats to cross into Spain's Ceuta territory from Monday as the Moroccan border forces looked the other way, taking Spanish authorities by surprise and raising tensions between Madrid and Rabat.

Madrid has since sent more than 6,000 of those migrants back and stopped new entries into Ceuta. But there have also been a smaller number getting into Melilla, Spain's other coastal enclave some 400 kilometres (250 miles) to the east.

Authorities in Melilla said that on Wednesday night "30 people entered our city, all men of legal age and of Moroccan origin".

It said that there were six attempts overnight to get over the border fence, which is several metres high.

In a previous attempt at dawn on Tuesday, 85 migrants from a group of more than 300 managed to get over the fence.

Other attempts have been made throughout the week.

The migrant influx came as tensions simmered between Spain and Morocco over Madrid's decision to provide medical treatment for the ailing leader of the Western Sahara independence movement, who has Covid-19.

Analysts say Morocco had sought to put diplomatic pressure on Spain to recognise its sovereignty over Western Sahara, a former Spanish colony mainly under Moroccan control.

However after accusing Morocco of "aggression" and "blackmail," Spain sought to lower the tone on Friday.

Spanish Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska said "there was a disagreement, but between two countries that know and respect each other".

We must ensure that "this disagreement is as short as possible," he told Spanish radio Cope.

Ceuta and Melilla have the European Union's only land borders with Africa and have long been a magnet for migrants seeking a better life in Europe.