At least 57 people have died during a massive surge of migrants attempting to enter the Spanish exclave of Ceuta from Morocco. An estimated 50,000 people attempted the crossing this week, although Spanish authorities said most returned to Morocco by Friday evening.

The sudden arrival of tens of thousands of migrants prompted Spain’s Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez to rush to the territory, Italy to temporarily restore some border controls on travel from Spain, and France to order extra checks along its border with Spain.

Authorities in Ceuta said many of those who lost their lives drowned as crowds streamed over the border by land and sea on Thursday, overwhelming border guards.

Spanish authorities said they would try to expel those who entered illegally as quickly as possible, despite a recent ruling by Spain’s Supreme Court that migrants arriving by sea cannot be returned to Morocco.

By Friday, many appear to have left of their own accord. Reuters reported seeing hundreds of people return to Morocco through border posts and holes in the fence, with some saying they could not find food or shelter in Ceuta.

Spain’s Interior Ministry said around 50,000 people had crossed the border since Thursday morning, while Ceuta’s regional government put the total at 60,000.

Sánchez said the mass crossings constituted a “violation of Spain’s territorial integrity” and blamed the influx on misinformation spread by people traffickers following the Supreme Court ruling.

“What happened yesterday deserves our full reproach, our full condemnation,” he said.

Drivers of the surge

Reuters spoke to 16-year-old Moroccan Ayoub El Abyad, who said he and his cousin decided to make the 12-hour journey toward Ceuta after watching Instagram videos of other migrants crossing.

“Migration is about improving our lives. We agreed we would try the idea of crossing and trust in God,” El Abyad told the news agency from the Moroccan side of the border.

The videos circulated as reports spread on social media about the Spanish Supreme Court ruling, leading many young Moroccans to see an opportunity to cross.

Broader economic frustrations are also a factor: Official figures cited by Reuters show that one in four Moroccans ages 15 to 24 are not in education, employment or training. Calm seas at this time of year also make swimming a more viable option.

Morocco does not recognize Spanish sovereignty over Ceuta or Melilla, describing the centuries-old Spanish exclaves as “occupied,” leading some analysts to question whether Moroccan authorities deliberately did little to prevent the crossings.

Concern across borders

The arrival of tens of thousands of people on Cueta overwhelmed the small Spanish exclave with a population of just 84,000 people, and sparked a storm of criticism both at home and abroad.

Italy said it was temporarily restoring some border controls on air and sea arrivals from Spain for 30 days. “The temporary suspension of #Schengen regarding Spain is a necessary step to safeguard our citizens’ security and defend European borders,” Italy’s Foreign Minister and Deputy Prime Minister Antonio Tajani said on X.

Ordinarily, all travelers flying or sailing between Spain and Italy are not subject to routine border checks. However, Italian public broadcaster RAI reported that “targeted checks” on some arrivals would being August 1 and remain in place for a month. Citing Interior Ministry sources, RAI said the controls would apply only to non-EU nationals arriving from Spain in Italy, to verify their eligibility to enter.

Spanish and other EU citizens traveling to Italy, as well as anyone traveling from Italy to Spain, will therefore face no additional requirements, according to RAI.

Italy’s Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni had earlier called for Spain’s membership of the Schengen agreement, which generally permits travel without internal border checks across much of Europe, to be suspended.

CNN contacted major airlines that fly between Spain and Italy about the potential impact on their services. Vueling said its flights were operating normally and its schedules were unaffected, but reminded passengers to carry valid travel documents. Iberia also said there were no changes to its flights to or from Italy and that it would notify customers if the situation changed.

Although Ceuta and Melilla, Spain’s other exclave in North Africa, are part of Schengen Area, border checks still apply on goods and travelers between those territories and mainland Spain.

Other European leaders also voiced concerns. EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said “we cannot allow anyone to come to our Union without abiding by our rules” in a post on X, and French Interior Minister Laurent Nunez said he had ordered extra checks along France’s border with Spain.

Migration is one of Europe’s most divisive issues. Far-right parties opposed to immigration have been on the rise, and governments across much of the continent have adopted tougher policies.

The pro-immigration policies of Sánchez’s Socialist government make it an outlier, and Thursday’s events will pile pressure on the prime minister.

The US State Department criticized Spain’s immigration policies and said the incident was a direct result of the Spanish government’s “deliberate efforts to enable and facilitate mass illegal migration into Europe.”

Meanwhile, US President Donald Trump warned that the migrant surge was an example of what’s to come if Republicans aren’t elected in November — something he said should be a “talking point for the midterms.”

The leader of Spain’s far-right opposition party Vox called the prime minister a “traitor” in a post on social media Thursday.

“He behaves like an enemy of the Spanish people,” Santiago Abascal wrote. “The national emergency can only be resolved by kicking him out.”

It’s not the first time this has happened in Ceuta - in May 2021, more than 8,000 migrants poured into Ceuta in just two days - although the scale of the influx this time appears to have been unprecedented.

“Honestly, I don’t even know why I came, and now I’m going back,” a young Moroccan man who said he was from Tangier told Reuters. “I haven’t eaten since lunch yesterday, even though I brought some money with me… What we’re doing is neither good nor enjoyable.” (CNN)

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