During New Year's Eve, “dozens of young Moroccans tried to cross” to enter the Spanish enclave of Melilla, in northern Morocco, through the Nador border post, and “despite the device police, some managed to get in,” said 1er January the Moroccan Association for Human Rights (AMDH) on Twitter. It was not possible to confirm this information with the Moroccan authorities.
محاولة عبور الى مليلية ليلة رأس السنة.
New attempt on New Year's Eve at the Melilla barrier. Dozens of young Moroccans tried to cross. Despite the police device in place, some managed to get through. pic.twitter.com/OTvQOevAEe— AMDH Nador (@NadorAmdh) January 1, 2023
A violent precedent
On 24 June, around 2,000 migrants, mostly from Sudan, attempted to enter Melilla via Nador. This attempt was preceded by violent clashes lasting several days in between migrants and Moroccan forces in clandestine camps set up around Nador. The tragedy killed 23 migrants, according to Moroccan authorities, 27 according to the AMDH.
This figure was the heaviest ever recorded during one of the migrants' many attempts to enter Melilla and the neighboring Spanish enclave of Ceuta, as the European Union's only land borders with the continent African.
(with AFP)
