Rabat – Following the death of two women porters in a stampede on August 28, Spanish and Moroccan authorities have agreed to again close the Tarajal border crossing at Ceuta, according to the Moroccan daily newspaper Al Ahdath Al Maghribia.
A common accord between the two states led them to close the crossing passage for 20 days, to reorganize the borderline and ensure its safety. It is scheduled to be reopened on September 17, making it the longest closure period yet.
An investigation is ongoing after two Moroccan women, aged 32 and 43 years and from Fnideq and Martil respectively, were killed and others suffered injuries in the stampede. The women died in an ambulance as they were being taken to the hospital.
The Tarajal checkpoint is a major transit route for Moroccan porters, known in Spanish as “porteadores,” primarily women, who transport goods across the border. Thousands of porters’ livelihoods are largely dependent upon trade with the Spanish enclave, carrying up to 100 kilograms on their backs in each trip.
Safety and security at the Ceuta crossing has historically provoked criticism by Moroccan officials.
In April, the former leader of Authenticity and Modernity Party (PAM), Ilyas El Omari compared the crossing border to the Israeli separation wall
“The same troubles the Palestinians face at the gates put up by Israel in front of the Al-Aqsa mosque, in opposition to international agreements, are what the waves of people at the illusory crossing of Ceuta live every morning,” he wrote in a Facebook post.
