Morocco increases border security with Spanish exclave of Ceuta

On Monday (Sep. 16), scores of security personnel were deployed to the Moroccan town of Fnideq, bordering the Spanish exclave of Ceuta.

Online messages in recent days had called for people to cross the border into Europe on Sunday.

Groups of people notably including Moroccans of all ages and sub-Saharan Africans, who had heeded the calls on social media, dispersed.

Still, some attempted to cross but were thwarted by security forces that maintained a strong presence on land and sea along the border, activists said.

Migrants and refugees seeking better lives in Europe set their eyes on Ceuta and Melilla — two tiny Spanish territories in North Africa bordering the Mediterranean —.

Many attempt to climb over barbed wire fences encircling the autonomous cities or reaching the exclaves by sea.

Moroccan authorities say over 11,000 migration attempts were prevented in the region around Ceuta, last month.