Late at night from May 16th to 17th, local time, about 6000 Moroccans took the Mediterranean Sea to swim into Spain’s overseas enclave in the Strait of Gibraltar (referring to land under the jurisdiction of a certain administrative region but not adjacent to this region) Ceuta.
The area of Ceuta is only 18.5 square kilometers.
As the land border between Europe and the African continent, this small land has become a popular entry point for illegal immigrants entering Europe in recent years.
Spain built a 6-meter isolation net between Ceuta and Morocco seven years ago, making smuggling over land more difficult.
Many immigrants decided to go to sea, launch from Morocco, and swim for several kilometers to land in Ceuta.
On the night of the 16th, more than 6,000 people swam into Ceuta in the dark with the help of lifebuoys and other tools. At least one person was killed on the way.
The Spanish media said that "the number of 6000 is absolutely unprecedented", and the smugglers include women and children.
Of these, 1,500 have been sent back to Morocco by Spain.
However, Al Jazeera said that according to regulations, minors who are not accompanied by a guardian will not be deported.
It is reported that more than 130 Moroccans tried to enter Spain in the same way three weeks ago, and most of them have now been repatriated.
(Producing Sui Zhiyuan)
Editor in charge: [Ji Xiang]