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Fez – The shocking picture of a Moroccan minor swimming to illegally enter the Spanish enclave of Ceuta back in May has been selected in Reuters’ collection of 2021 pictures of the year.
The incident had grasped international attention, with many media outlets discussing its significance within the broader context of the ongoing irregular immigration to Ceuta.
Reuters revealed last week its 2021 pictures of the year selection that includes the best shots that have been captured by the agency photographers. The collection contains instant documentation of the major issues and incidents that took place this year around the world.
The collection, published on December 3, depicts accounts of a wide array of topics ranging from the COVID-19 related concerns to irregular immigration.
On the issue of irregular migration, the London-based news agency listed the scandalous picture that tells the story of a Moroccan teenager who was caught swimming at the fence between the Moroccan-Spanish border, near the Spanish enclave of Ceuta.
“A Moroccan boy cries as he swims using bottles as floaters, near the fence between the Spanish-Moroccan border, after thousands of migrants swam across the border, in Ceuta, Spain, May 19, 2021, ” Reuters captioned.
The heartbreaking scene of the boy swimming with bottles under his clothes and attached to his arms to keep him afloat made headlines around the world.
The desperate boy was crying and begging Spanish border guards to let him cross the fence while swimming back and forth. Yet, once he reached the beach, he was led away by border guards.
Read also: Spanish Enclave Ceuta Threatened by Moroccan Development Projects
The incident was part of a mass irregular migration crisis that happened last May as an unprecedented number of minors and families illegally swam into Spain’s northern African enclave of Ceuta, only miles away from M’diq.
The event attracted international media attention as over 10,000 thousand migrants from several Moroccan cities attempted to escape the Spanish enclave, with many minors currently residing in the city in wait for Spanish authorities’ assessment of their asylum claims.
Irregular migration has long been a core concern for Moroccan authorities, given the country’s geographical location as Africa’s portal to the European continent, making it the primary target of irregular migrant smuggling and human trafficking networks. Each year, Morocco records considerable attempts to escape to the European shores.
Meanwhile, precarious conditions confronting Morocco’s youth also contribute to pushing a large pool of the country’s young populations to aim for immigration at whatever costs.
