Spain deploys floating barrier in Ceuta as migrant crisis death toll rises

The barrier, installed off Ceuta’s Tarajal beach, is now operational and is intended to prevent irregular sea crossings after tens of thousands of migrants entered the enclave in recent days, many of them attempting to reach shore by swimming.

Spanish authorities said on Sunday that the official death toll linked to the crisis had risen to 72. Meanwhile, Ceuta’s regional government reported that 88 bodies are currently being held at the city’s morgue, with some recovered from the sea more than two weeks after the mass arrivals. Identification efforts are still ongoing.

Although the scale of arrivals has declined, Ceuta remains under heightened security measures. Police and military personnel continued operations across the city on Sunday, detaining migrants found in public areas. Those detained were taken to police stations for identification before possible deportation procedures.

The migrant influx has become one of Spain’s most serious border crises in recent years, prompting emergency measures from the government and renewed debate across Europe over migration management and the protection of the European Union’s external borders.

Earlier, it was reported that a group of 22 European Union leaders had called for an emergency meeting of EU interior ministers following a surge in irregular migrant crossings into the Spanish enclave of Ceuta.