Migrants who arrived in the Spanish city of Ceuta claim that the Moroccan authorities allowed them to cross the Spanish border unimpeded by boat, the Washington Post reports, referring to the migrants' stories. At the end of July, a massive wave of illegal migration from Morocco took place in Ceuta.
Spanish Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlasca said that about 72,000 migrants crossed from Morocco to Spain, of which about 70,000 have already returned.
Moroccan authorities estimate that about 40,000 people managed to reach the Spanish enclave. "Several migrants in Ceuta said that the Moroccan authorities allowed them to cross the border unhindered," the report said. Moroccan migrant Ibtisam Sarji told the newspaper that Moroccan guards warned him that they would stop him if he tried to cross the border by land, but not if he tried to swim.
