Police move Ceuta migrants off beaches in Spanish enclave

MADRID

This photo shows large tents at a camp for migrants in Ceuta.

Police on Sept. 18 began moving hundreds of migrants from the beaches of Ceuta to the Spanish enclave’s port area.

During the transfer, the police struggled to contain crowds of people jostling to secure a spot at the new tented site after weeks of living on the beaches. Authorities say there are enough tents for 1,700 people.

Tens of thousands of migrants flooded across the border from Morocco in late July and though most quickly returned, several thousand have remained with many now sleeping rough on the territory’s beaches.

Police started rounding up the migrants at 6:30 a.m., according to a Spanish government source in Cueta.

The tent city in the port has showers and beds, the source added.

Ceuta authorities estimate that 13,000 migrants have remained in the 18.5 square kilometer (7.2 square mile) territory. The central government says the figure is lower.

The Spanish government went ahead with the transfer despite opposition from the conservative local authority.

Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez has faced strong criticism over the handling of the crisis.

He is also in dispute with Italy, which temporarily reimposed border controls.