Last Ceuta migrant camp removed ahead of Spanish king’s visit

Spanish authorities on Sunday cleared the last major migrant encampment in Ceuta, two days before a visit by Spain’s king and queen, AFP reporters at the scene said.

The camp sprang up after a mass influx of more than 70,000 people into the Spanish territory from neighbouring Morocco on July 30 and 31.

Although most returned to Morocco within days, thousands remain in Ceuta, sleeping rough in the streets or on beaches.

The sudden influx, during which scores of people died, sparked alarm across the EU and triggered a political crisis in Madrid.

Police backed by soldiers arrived shortly after 8.00am on Sunday at the El Guano esplanade, where hundreds of migrants had been camping in makeshift shelters following earlier clearances of settlements on nearby beaches, an AFP reporter saw.

Migrants were put on buses and taken to reception centres, while cleaning crews moved in to clear the esplanade and beach.

Some migrants fled into nearby hills to avoid being put on buses.

King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia are scheduled to visit Ceuta on Tuesday, on a trip coordinated with the government.

Morocco claims sovereignty over Ceuta and Melilla, Spain’s two North African enclaves.

The royal visit to Ceuta, followed by a trip to Melilla on Oct 14, will be the first by a Spanish monarch to the two cities since King Juan Carlos travelled there in November 2007, sparking a diplomatic crisis with Morocco.