Ceuta migrant rush puts Pedro Sanchez under EU fire over border policy

Watch: Migrants started to return to Morocco after thousands entered Spain's Ceuta on 30 July The Schengen agreement eliminates border checks and now encompasses more than 450 million people and 29 countries in Europe.

Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni issued the most blunt criticism of Sanchez, as well as announcing that Italy would enforce air and sea border controls with Spain.

On Tuesday, EU interior ministers will have emergency talks by video conference to discuss the issue.

The EU already has similar wide-ranging agreements with Egypt and Tunisia, which include pledges to stem migration, but have been heavily criticised by rights groups.

“It’s an atrocity,” said Juan Jesús Vivas, the long-serving conservative leader of the territory.

The collection of fingerprints and DNA samples will be completed by the end of next week at the latest, said Carlos Atuchi, an official with the Civil Guard’s forensic science department.

Small inflatable boats from a rescue unit scoured the waters around the border barrier that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, where a new 500-metre (1,640-feet) floating boom reinforced security.

Nothing made sense.” Despite the crowds, El Abbas noticed the police were only letting Moroccans cross over.

They argued that the Spanish government’s relatively open migration policy could have played a part.

Some drowned, while others were killed in a stampede as people tried to cross a breakwater barrier.

“I have documents, so it’s easy for me,” she says.

Spanish authorities say trafficking networks spread misinformation that asylum could easily be obtained in Spain.

US President Donald Trump has also weighed in, attempting to tie the brief migrant surge in Ceuta to the US midterm elections in November.

But she faces elections next year with her coalition losing ground to a new and virulently anti-immigrant party.

The mass crossing prompted alarm across the European Union, and 22 member states wrote a letter asking for coordinated action to protect external borders and other measures.

Others tried to climb the breakwater that holds the border fence.

In April, the government approved plans to give legal status to 500,000 undocumented migrants , allowing them to be formally integrated into the workforce.

“The reality is, it’s not good,” Abdelatif said, before wading into the water with his girlfriend.

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Spain-Morocco ties have long been shaped by disagreements over migration, border management, and the disputed territory of Western Sahara.

This migrant spoke with CBS News’ @aidan_stretch — the only broadcast news reporter on the… pic.twitter.com/QDNBgSRsfD After restoring order, Spain began reinforcing its border with Morocco.

Immigration, counterterrorism and cultural exchanges are among the issues expected to be discussed.

“Life in this city has been disrupted as a result of the border incident,” said Ceuta's President Juan Jesús Vivas.

With migration once again dominating headlines, the government has sought to demonstrate a tough stance on border security.

“Honestly, I don’t even know why I came, and now I’m going back,” a young Moroccan man, who said he was from Tangier, told Reuters.