Hundreds of Moroccan migrants are living in a makeshift camp on El Trampolín beach in Ceuta, Spain, amid uncertainty over their future and fears of deportation.
The migrants, many of them young people, have been staying in tents on the beach after reportedly declining to move to official reception centres.
Their decision follows Madrid’s announcement of plans to deport migrants who arrived in Ceuta in July through the border with Morocco.
For those remaining at the makeshift camp, conditions are increasingly difficult, with migrants complaining of inadequate shelter, health risks and uncertainty over when they will be allowed to move on.
Nebil Tazi, a 32-year-old migrant from Tangier, said the group was desperate for a solution.
“Only Moroccans live here; we’re suffering and we want to get to Europe or find a solution right now. Here, we’re all sleeping on the beach and having a really hard time,” Tazi said.
“We’re taking a lot of risks because there are many diseases. And he needs a doctor, but he can’t find one. We’ve been waiting for a month, waiting for a solution here, but there isn’t one.”
Another migrant, 21-year-old Hamza Mohammed, said he remained hopeful of joining relatives in Spain and finding employment that would enable him to support his family.
“I have family in Spain and in Morocco, we need jobs, we need money, we need to help my family and here in Spain we can do it – in Morocco no; in Morocco we can’t do it,” Mohammed said.
The situation has heightened tensions in Ceuta, a Spanish territory on Africa’s northern coast, weeks after the mass arrival of tens of thousands of migrants.
Local residents have staged demonstrations, accusing the Spanish government of failing to provide a clear and effective policy for dealing with the influx.
The migrants stranded on El Trampolín beach now face an uncertain future as Spanish authorities weigh deportations while humanitarian concerns grow over the conditions in the makeshift camp.
