ANDALUCIA’s ruling party has opened the door to accepting migrant minors into the region after 72,000 people crossed into the Spanish exclave of Ceuta from Morocco last week.
Elias Bendodo, the Partido Popular’s (PP) deputy secretary for regional policy, said on Thursday Andalucia would ‘comply with existing regulations’ as more than 1,000 unaccompanied migrant minors remain in Ceuta following the mass crossing on July 31.
The Spanish government has said it was preparing to transfer minors who cannot be reunited with their families to other parts of the country, prompting outrage from Spain’s far-right Vox.
The party, which forms part of Andalucia’s governing coalition with the PP, branded the Ceuta migrants ‘invaders’ and insisted that minors should be sent ‘back where they belong: in Morocco.’
Vox’s Andalucian leader Manuel Gavira said on X: “Andalucia, like the rest of [Spain’s regional] governments where Vox is present, is going to oppose any distribution of unaccompanied minors proposed by Sanchez’s government.”
He added: “What happened in Ceuta is an invasion, and those who crossed the border illegally should be back where they belong: in Morocco. If they are minors, [they should be sent back] to their parents.”
Under a coalition agreement signed between the PP and Vox after May’s regional elections, the Andalucian government committed to a ‘categorical rejection of the arrival of more illegal immigrants, both adults and minors.’
However, the pact also states that Andalucia will ‘comply with the existing legal framework regarding the arrival of illegal immigrants on the Andalucian coast.’
Under Spanish law, foreign minors in Spain are entitled to protection and basic services on the same terms as Spanish children, regardless of their immigration status.
The Spanish government said on Tuesday that around 70,000 of the 72,000 migrants who entered Ceuta had already returned to Morocco, leaving around 2,000 still in the enclave.
It also announced an additional €25 million in funding for Ceuta on August 4 to deal with the influx, on top of another €5.5 million already allocated in July.
Meanwhile, Spain and Morocco have said they are on alert and ‘closely cooperating’ as calls grow on social media for another mass crossing attempt on August 15.
Fact-checkers at Spanish investigative outlet Maldita.es found posts across Instagram, Facebook and Telegram apparently encouraging people to travel to Fnideq, Morocco, ahead of a new bid to enter Ceuta.
Some posts explicitly referred to August 15, while others discussed making the journey earlier because the border could be more heavily guarded that day.
One Facebook user wrote: “Brothers, at sunset and dawn on the 15th everyone enters,” while others urged would-be migrants to exercise caution.
Since last week’s mass crossing, Spanish authorities have significantly reinforced the border, deploying additional Policia Nacional and Guardia Civil officers alongside military personnel.
Spain has also installed a 500-metre floating barrier off the Tarajal border crossing, the main land and sea gateway between Ceuta and Morocco, where migrants have previously attempted to enter the enclave by swimming.
The barrier features a submerged section to prevent swimmers from diving underneath it.
The Spanish Navy has also stepped up maritime surveillance around the enclave, while Moroccan and Spanish authorities maintain a heightened security presence along the border.
Ceuta president Juan Jesus Vivas has meanwhile called for the border to be ‘shielded’ with additional personnel and equipment, warning that residents remain fearful of another mass crossing.
Local authorities said 88 people died while attempting to enter the enclave last Friday, though Guardia Civil and sea rescue NGOs put the figure at more than 100.
Dozens of bodies were recovered from Moroccan and Spanish waters for days after the tragedy, with most of the dead initially identified as young men aged between 20 and 30.
The majority were Moroccan nationals, officials said, though the toll also includes sub-Saharan Africans, a small number of women, and very few children.
Click here to read more Spain News from The Olive Press.
