Fez – Amid tensions between Morocco and Spain, reports have been circulating about a noticeable change in the border spots between Morocco and the Spanish enclaves of Ceuta and Melilla.
According to converging local reports, Moroccan authorities have removed the word “border” from the new name of the border spots in Melilla and Ceuta.
The same reports indicated that the border commission Ceuta was replaced by the “Bab Ceuta” (Gate of Ceuta) commission and the border commission in Melilla by the “Bab Melilla” (Gate of Melilla) commission.
Morocco’s General Directorate of National Security issued the change order, according to the reports.
The sovereignty of Ceuta and Melilla has always been a subject of controversy between Morocco and Spain. Morocco has long denied Spanish control over the two cities, arguing that they are Moroccan and that Spain’s presence there is a relic of Spanish colonialism in Morocco.
Morocco has also repeatedly demanded talks to address the status of the two Spanish enclaves, a request that Madrid has equally repeatedly declined. Although only symbolic, the change from “border” to “gate” to designate the border spots between the two enclaves and Morocco comes as an additional step in Rabat’s protestation of Spanish sovereignty over the two cities.
Read also: One in Five Spaniards Say Ceuta and Melilla Will Soon be Moroccan
In Morocco, many commentators and officials generally point to Spain’s ongoing dispute with the United Kingdom over the status of Gibraltar to confront the Spanish government with the “disingenuousness” of its sovereignty claims over Ceuta and Melilla.
The name change comes amid months of unsettled Spanish-Moroccan tensions, including the most recent territorial dispute over the Chafarinas Islands.
Still, many Spanish officials have claimed Madrid is keen to mend relations and restore diplomatic ties with Rabat. However, recent reports of resurfaced tensions over a number of unresolved territorial disputes have cast doubt on the apparent drive to repair the damaged bilateral ties.
