RABAT – No fewer than 400 sub-Saharan migrants tried to force their way into the Spanish coastal enclave of Ceuta on Tuesday, and 231 of them were arrested by Moroccan security forces, local radio reported.
It added that the rest fled to neighbouring forest and no migrants managed to reach the coastal city.
It was the latest in a series of attempts by sub-Saharan migrants to reach Europe through Morocco’s northern shore.
Each year, thousands of migrants fleeing hardship try to cross the fences surrounding Melilla and Ceuta, two Spanish territories bordering Morocco which are Europe’s only land borders with Africa.
According to Spanish government figures, around 16,000 illegal African migrants have tried to infiltrate Melilla in the past eight months.
However, large numbers of Moroccan and Spanish security forces have been deployed on both sides of the fenced border to prevent entry by illegal migrants. (Xinhua/NAN)
