Ceuta asks Madrid for national emergency as migrant crossings from Morocco surge

The Local Spain—Local officials in Spain's North African enclave of Ceuta have asked Madrid to declare a national emergency after migrant crossings from Morocco surged, with hundreds reported swimming across the strait and, per EFE, thousands more crossing on foot in a separate wave. Ceuta's local government also requested an army deployment to seal the Moroccan border, but Spain's defense ministry says it has no immediate plans to send troops — a rift between local and national authorities over urgency. The gap between the swimming reports and the on-foot crossing figures suggests migrants are using multiple routes into the enclave at once. Neither Madrid nor Rabat has addressed the scale or cause of the surge.

• The Local Spain — Hundreds of migrants swim from Morocco to Spain's Ceuta territory
• Hindustan Times — Hundreds of migrants are swimming from Morocco to the Spanish territory of Ceuta
• The Straits Times — Thousands of migrants cross into Spain’s north African enclave Ceuta on foot, EFE reports
• The Straits Times — Thousands of migrants cross into Spain's Ceuta on foot, EFE reports
• The Independent (UK) — Ceuta asks Madrid to declare a national emergency as thousands cross into the Spanish territory
• France 24 — Hundreds of migrants enter Spain's north African territory Ceuta from Morocco
• Deutsche Welle — Spain: Hundreds of migrants attempt to swim toward Ceuta