Crossing

• EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has called for urgent action and a meeting of interior ministers following a surge of migrant crossings into the Spanish territory of Ceuta. • While Finland and Denmark supported Italy's stance on border security, Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babiš proposed the temporary suspension of Spain's Schengen membership. • Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez defended Spain, noting that Ceuta is not part of the Schengen area and accusing some critics of being driven by prejudice and fake news.

Juan Jesús Vivas says influx seen as ‘at least encouraged or permitted’ by Rabat, as Spain demands EU solidarityExplainer: why is Ceuta a migration flashpoint?A growing chorus of voices have accused Morocco of helping to fuel the crisis in Ceuta, with the leader of the Spanish enclave describing last week’s border crossings as an attack on Spain’s territorial integrity that was seen as being “if not orchestrated, at least encouraged or permitted by Morocco”.Spain’s interior ministry said late last week that 48,300 of the roughly 50,000 people who had turned up in Ceuta, a tiny Spanish territory in north Africa, had been sent back to Morocco. The extraordinary influx had overwhelmed the city of 84,000 and set off a political crisis across the EU as some member states laid blame on Spain. Continue reading...

Prime minister says UK needs to ‘bring back that control’, but safe routes for refugees are necessary to tackle traffickingAndy Burnham has pledged to be “relentless” in tackling small boat crossings after tens of thousands of migrants entered Ceuta, a Spanish territory, but said “safe routes” for refugees were necessary to tackle trafficking gangs.Speaking during a visit to Dover, the prime minister said he had been assured by the Spanish prime minister, Pedro Sánchez, that approximately 98% of the estimated 50,000 people who entered Spain’s north African territory of Ceuta last week have now been returned to Morocco. Continue reading...

People among the more than 50,000 who entered Spanish enclave this week describe the journey and their prospectsFour days ago, Youssef El Abbas saw an opportunity to reclaim the life he had lost years seven earlier. News was circulating that about 400 people had swum from Morocco to the neighbouring Spanish enclave of Ceuta on the north African coast, approximately 12 miles (19km) across the strait of Gibraltar from mainland Spain.Here was a chance for the 44-year-old Moroccan father of four to return to Spain, from which he had been deported when his residency expired after the loss of his job in Bilbao in 2019. Continue reading...

• The European Union has called an emergency meeting to address the ongoing crisis involving an influx of migrants into the Spanish enclave of Ceuta. • Tensions have escalated after Italy, with support from Finland and Denmark, suspended the border-free Schengen arrangement with Spain. • Spain has strongly condemned these actions, describing the response from other EU member states as "selfish, polarising and unlawful."

• Italy has temporarily suspended the Schengen border-free arrangement with Spain following "shocking" scenes of migrant crossings in Ceuta. • The move received support from Finland and Denmark, while Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babiš went further by urging a temporary suspension of Spain's overall Schengen membership. • Spain has criticized the response of these EU nations, labeling their actions as "selfish" amid the migration crisis.

• Italy has temporarily suspended the Schengen border-free arrangement with Spain following a surge of migrant crossings in the Spanish enclave of Ceuta. • Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni described the scenes in Ceuta as "shocking," prompting Finland and Denmark to support Italy's decision. • Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babiš has gone further, urging a temporary suspension of Spain's overall membership in the Schengen area.