Spain deports migrants from Ceuta in move criticised by rights group

What the report says

Spain has deported more than a dozen migrants from its North African enclave of Ceuta, Al Jazeera reported, in a move that drew criticism from Amnesty International. According to the article, Spain’s Interior Ministry said the migrants were removed after their asylum claims were rejected and that Morocco agreed to take them back. NGOs speaking to Reuters said 16 people were deported. Al Jazeera said this was the first deportation of its kind since a large crossing into Ceuta from Morocco in July.

The report said the July influx involved around 80,000 people entering Ceuta over 48 hours, leaving the Spanish enclave facing a major humanitarian and political crisis. At least 100 people died during that episode, according to the article. Ceuta, which borders Morocco and is one of Spain’s autonomous enclaves in North Africa, has since struggled to house and process migrants who remain there. Al Jazeera said about 8,000 migrants were still in the area, with some living on the streets and others receiving support from Spanish authorities, charities and civil society groups.

Amnesty International argued that Spain was not sufficiently protecting the rights of people crossing into Ceuta, while Madrid defended the deportations and said they were carried out with the necessary safeguards. The issue has become politically sensitive in Spain ahead of snap elections scheduled for November 29, with both protests against the government’s handling of migration and criticism from right-wing opposition figures intensifying. The broader context is Spain’s ongoing tension over migration routes through its North African territories.