Violent clashes erupted between illegal migrants and Spanish riot police in Ceuta on Tuesday evening as thousands gathered for a daily Red Cross food distribution, adding another flashpoint to the mounting disorder gripping the Spanish enclave nearly a month after the mass invasion from Morocco.
The clashes broke out at Playa del Trampolín at about 7pm, where large crowds gathered and queued for food. Around 50 officers from the Policía Nacional’s riot-control unit were deployed to keep order and protect Red Cross personnel as they distributed the packages.
El País, whose reporter was at the scene, said the confrontation began when a man started praying outside the queue and was pushed by police. Shouting followed, then stones were thrown, and the confrontation escalated into what the newspaper described as a large-scale brawl. Other reports and police sources described disturbances among migrants before officers intervened.
Riot police charged the crowd and deployed tear gas as people fled towards the road and nearby breakwater. Canal Sur reported that officers also fired rubber bullets to disperse illegal migrants. Local outlet El Faro de Ceuta said a gas described as similar to pepper spray affected people in the surrounding area, including residents passing on motorcycles who stopped to wash their eyes with water.
The disorder forced the food distribution to be halted, according to local reporting, with Red Cross personnel withdrawing from the area. The beach has remained a major gathering point despite authorities previously clearing the improvised camp of more than 1,200 illegal migrants and transferring them to other facilities. Thousands later returned for food distributions.
The violence came as Ceuta was already facing growing civil unrest over Madrid’s handling of the migration crisis. Hundreds of residents marched through the city on Tuesday against plans to use additional public facilities, including former military sites and potentially sports complexes, to accommodate illegal migrants who remain in the enclave.
Demonstrators carried Spanish and Ceuta flags, demanded the resignation of Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez and the government delegate, and shouted slogans including ‘I don’t want invaders, I want my freedom’ and ‘Ceuta is not a CETI’, a reference to migrant reception centres.
Tensions rose further when part of the crowd moved towards Hotel Ulises, where protesters believed minister Ángel Víctor Torres, appointed to coordinate the government’s unified response, was staying. Europa Press reported that several demonstrators tried to force their way into the hotel but were stopped by police.
Ceuta has been under exceptional pressure since more than 80,000 people entered illegally from Morocco at the end of July. Tuesday marked the most violent day in nearly a month, although the situation remains chaotic on a daily basis, with authorities overwhelmed and thousands of illegal migrants still in Ceuta.
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