EU calls emergency meeting to discuss Ceuta migrant crossings
The European Union is holding emergency talks following a surge of 60,000 migrants entering the Spanish enclave of Ceuta. Tensions have risen between Spain and other EU member states, with Italy suspending the Schengen agreement in response to the crisis.
Why it matters
The migration crisis tests the unity of the EU's border policies and the stability of the Schengen Area.
Share Save Add as preferred on Google Jamie Whitehead and Tinshui Yeung Watch: Migrants started to return to Morocco after thousands entered Spain's Ceuta on 30 July The European Union will hold emergency talks on Tuesday to discuss the migration crisis in Ceuta after tense exchanges between Spain and other member states.
Twenty-two member states issued a joint letter calling for co-ordinated action and the strengthening of the EU's external borders, after some 60,000 migrants entered the Spanish enclave from Morocco.
Spain condemned "selfish, polarising and unlawful" reaction to the crisis after Italy suspended the EU's border-free Schengen arrangement with Spain - a move backed by Finland and Denmark.
Officials say almost all those who reached Ceuta on 30 July have returned, while deaths from the surge in crossings had risen to at least 67.
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