Ceuta migrant crisis: Spain, Morocco strike return deal after 49,000 crossings in 24 hours

Around 49,000 migrants have crossed into Spain’s North African enclave of Ceuta from Morocco in the last 24 hours through sea and land, according to the Spanish Department of National Security.

On Thursday, thousands of migrants tried to cross or scale barriers from neighbouring Morocco through swimming around breakwaters by using inflatable devices. Some scaled the higher border fence separating Morocco from the Spanish enclave. The footage of such dramatic scenes quickly took the internet by storm.

As reported by BBC, at least 18 people have lost their lives while attempting to cross the treacherous sea and enter the territory.

The chaotic migrant surge comes after Spain's Supreme Court’s ruling this month. As per the ruling, the migrants stopped at sea while attempting to reach Ceuta or Melilla cannot be returned to Morocco.

In the wake of a humanitarian crisis, Ceuta President Juan Jesús Vivas asked Spain to declare a national emergency. However, the Spanish interior ministry refused to impose one announced to deploy troops to bolster border security.

According to Reuters, Spain and Morocco bolstered the border fence of Ceuta on Friday and “appeared to have largely halted mass crossings.”

The Arab Weekly also reported that both Madrid and Rabat have struck a migrant return deal, agreeing to return all migrants who recently entered the Spanish enclave from Morocco.

Both countries have agreed to coordinate directly to address a surge of massive border crossings into Ceuta. Spanish Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska praised Morocco's "exemplary" cooperation in migration management, adding that Moroccan forces successfully prevented thousands of migrants from reaching the enclave's borders.