Twenty-one migrants identified after throwing stones at patrol in Ceuta

Twenty-one migrants who threw stones at a military patrol in the Ceuta enclave have been identified and agreed to return to Morocco, sources within the Spanish Civil Guard said on Sunday.

The events took place on Saturday evening on Trampolin beach, one of the places where many migrants are concentrated who still live in the streets of this Spanish enclave in North Africa, after the massive arrival of 70,000 people from Morocco at the end of July. After the soldiers reported that they were the target of stone throwing, “the Civil Guard intervened to identify the people involved, who voluntarily returned to Morocco,” the sources said. The altercation ended “without causing any material damage or injuries,” according to them.

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How many migrants are still there?

Although the vast majority of migrants who arrived at the end of July left shortly after, several thousand of them - around 5,000 according to the central government, 10,000 according to local authorities - are still in the enclave. Since then, several episodes of tension have taken place in this 18.5 km² territory with 80,000 inhabitants, including stone throwing against military patrols, which have already led to expulsions. Clashes also took place with the police during demonstrations by residents demanding the departure of migrants.

The Spanish government, strongly criticized by the right-wing and far-right opposition for its management of the crisis, is seeking to accelerate the return of migrants. The government decided on Saturday to take control of the port of Ceuta, after local authorities - led by the opposition Popular Party - refused to install temporary accommodation structures for migrants. “These are shelters that will be dismantled, and which are therefore not intended for [the migrants] to stay in Ceuta,” explained the Minister of Territorial Policy, Ángel Víctor Torres, on public television on Sunday. “The sooner we identify them, the sooner they can be returned,” he added, seeking to appease residents.