The Spanish government announced on Sunday that more than 5,300 migrants who remained in the city of Ceuta after the wave of influx it witnessed in July returned to Morocco within one month, while the authorities face pressure to restore calm in the city that is witnessing increasing tensions.
These new numbers come amid criticism directed at the government regarding the slow pace of returning migrants from Ceuta, the Spanish enclave located in North Africa, which reflects negatively on Socialist Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez, a year away from the next elections.
On July 30 and 31, Ceuta witnessed an unprecedented influx of migrants, numbering more than 70,000, in an incident that resulted in casualties, before most of them returned to Morocco in the following hours.
The government was forced to verify the identities of thousands of migrants who remained in the city for weeks, to determine whether they were eligible for asylum, while unaccompanied children could not be deported immediately.
Regional Policy Minister Angel Victor Torres, charged with leading the government's response to the crisis, said in a video posted on social media that 5,321 people had "voluntarily returned" to Morocco since August 10.
Torres added that 90 people "withdrew" applications they had submitted to obtain international protection, while "about a thousand people are being registered with the aim of completing their return procedures."
The minister did not clarify the number of migrants who remain in Ceuta after their return, an issue that raises a debate between the leftist government and local authorities in the conservative-run city.
The head of the local government of the Ceuta enclave, Juan Jesús Vivas, who belongs to the opposition right-wing People's Party, said on Friday that the number of migrants still in the city is 13,000, while government estimates indicate much lower numbers.
Ceuta residents continue to organize regular protests, while migrants continue to camp on beaches and sleep in the streets, accusing the government of abandoning the overburdened city in the midst of a humanitarian crisis.
The Ministry of Immigration announced on Sunday the creation of 864 additional places in temporary accommodation centers for immigrants, bringing the total capacity to about 4,300 places, with an effort to increase it to 6,000 “in the near future.”
Questions are growing about whether the government had advance knowledge of the influx, as well as a possible role for Morocco, with which Madrid has made efforts over the years to improve relations, exacerbating the political pressure facing Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez.
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