Rabat – Around 2,000 illegal migrants attempted today to jump the fence that separates the Spanish enclave Melilla from the Moroccan city of Nador. At least 130 migrants managed to enter Melilla.
According to local news outlet El Faro de Melilla, more than 500 sub-Saharan migrants reached a border checkpoint area at around 8:40 am, after using a bolt cutter to dismantle the fence.
Violent clashes erupted between security and the migrants, injuring 49 Spanish police officers and 57 migrants. The 106 injured people were transferred to the hospital to receive treatment.
While the majority of migrants were forced back, around 130 men successfully entered Melilla, where they are being processed at the enclave’s reception center for immigration, local media indicated.
A video of the incident shows the migrants who have reached Melilla cheering in celebration, as they ran through the streets of the Spanish enclave.
The migrants “were perfectly organized and even carried backpacks loaded with stones and hammers,” said El Faro de Melilla.
The mass crossing occurred a day after approximately 500 sub-Saharan migrants similarly attempted to storm Melilla’s high fence. The migrants were hiding in woodland in Morocco’s Nador near the Spanish enclave.
Thursday’s irregular migration attempt led to violent clashes between Moroccan security services and the migrants, resulting in 116 injuries among security members, Spanish news agency EFE reported.
Several security members and migrants were admitted to Morocco’s Hassani Hospital in the city of Nador for treatment.
Read also: Irregular Migration Flows Declined After Spain’s Support For Morocco’s Autonomy Plan
The two mass crossing attempts are the first since Morocco and Spain mended diplomatic ties in March, with the European country endorsing Morocco’s autonomy plan for Western Sahara.
As irregular migration poses a challenge for the two nations, Morocco and Spain have vowed to cooperate to tackle the migration crisis. Since 2017, Moroccan security services have thwarted over 14,000 irregular migration attempts into Spain.
