- At least 23 migrants died in the attack on the border fence between Morocco and the Spanish North African exclave of Melilla.
- According to the media, another 60 migrants and around 140 Moroccan police officers were injured.
- Melilla is considered the gateway to the EU for migrants from Africa.
Up to 2,000 people broke through one of the gates in the border fence between Morocco and Melilla and entered the Spanish exclave. As a result, at least 18 people died in the crowd or by falling from the fence, the Spanish newspapers “El País” and “La Vanguardia” reported on Friday evening, citing information from the authorities.
According to Spanish and Moroccan authorities, around 130 people managed to get over the two parallel, six-metre-high fences and into Spanish territory. 63 migrants and around 140 Moroccan security forces were injured in the two-hour clashes.
The Moroccan Interior Ministry accused the migrants of using violence. They come from sub-Saharan Africa. Video images on the Internet show the mostly young men running through the streets of Melilla, beaming with joy, singing and dancing. They were taken to an emergency center.
Spain’s Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez spoke of a “well-organized, violent” attack and blamed the “people smuggling mafia”. In North Africa, migrants keep trying to get to Melilla and the nearby Spanish enclave of Ceuta.
Melilla as the gateway to Europe
Morocco became independent from France and Spain in 1956. Nevertheless, Spain continues to hold two exclaves there: Melilla and Ceuta, 250 kilometers further west on the Strait of Gibraltar. Both are claimed by Rabat.
In the vicinity of the two areas, often tens of thousands of Africans, mainly from sub-Saharan countries, are waiting for a chance to enter the EU. Usually several hundred people try to surprise the border officials and get across the border.