Spanish Ceuta witnesses a deadly ‘game’ for Moroccan migrants
Al Jazeera – News
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For the past couple of days, I have commuted to work between Europe and Africa. When an estimated 60,000 migrants arrived in Ceuta, Spain’s autonomous outpost on the northern tip of Africa , from Morocco this week, businesses shut their doors and all available beds quickly disappeared. So, we have been staying in the mainland Spanish port city of Algeciras, taking the one-hour ferry to and from Ceuta. A fellow commuter is Isabel Hossein, a port police officer in Algeciras whose home is Ceuta. “I have documents, so it’s easy for me,” she says. “Sometimes I cross the border to Morocco just for lunch. Why not? The food is good.” Isabel says the mass influx of migrants on Wednesday and Thursday was overwhelming for the residents of Ceuta. “People were afraid; there were so many young men everywhere,” she said. “I am half Christian, half Muslim, as many in Ceuta are. We live peacefully together. Opposition politicians blame the left-wing Spanish government’s immigration policies for the weekend’s events, some describing it as “an invasion”. Zia Yusuf , a senior figure in the anti-immigration Reform UK party, turned up in Ceuta to join those from the right and far right trying to set their narrative for the events. Spain has effectively militarised its border.
From the source
This weekend, thousands of Moroccans attempted to reach the Spanish North African enclave of Ceuta.
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