Ceuta warns it is 'on the brink of collapse' as Spain seeks Frontex and Europol help
Spain has requested urgent assistance from EU agencies Frontex and Europol to manage a surge of irregular migrants in Ceuta. Local authorities warn the city is on the verge of collapse following the arrival of 72,000 migrants from Morocco.
Why it matters
The situation highlights ongoing tensions regarding border management and migration policy between Spain, Morocco, and the European Union.
Spain has asked the European Commission (EC) for the support from Frontex and Europol to assist with the screening of migrants who are staying irregularly in Ceuta, according to several Spanish media outlets.Spain's Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska has asked the EC for Frontex, Europol and the European Union Agency for Asylum (EUAA) to "reinforce the device set up to address the management of the triage and subsequent processing of the personal files of the immigrants who still remain in Ceuta irregularly."The Interior Ministry also demanded the extension of Operation Minerva, a joint initiative of the Spanish police and the EU border protection agency Frontex.Madrid ask that that operation run until 2 September until "the situation created in the autonomous city is resolved."Madrid also asked for the " assistance of the European Union Agency for Asylum in conducting interviews and providing interpreters" in order to triage migrants.Due to space limitations in…
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