Spain: 1,800 migrants relocated to Ceuta, 500 minors to join the peninsula.

Police accompanied the migrants to a former military field and a converted parking lot, according to reports from El País and Cadena SER. The spaces, managed by the associations Accem and Engloba, have increased the number of immediately available places to approximately 1,800, up from the 1,500 announced at the beginning of the week.

The relocation to these facilities should not be confused with the plan prepared by the Spanish Ministry of Youth and Childhood to transfer 500 underage girls from Ceuta to mainland Spain. This second initiative, announced on August 19, aims to distribute the young people involved among reception structures and several autonomous communities.

The crisis dates back to July 30 and 31, when more than 72,000 people crossed the border, according to a count reported by Reuters. The vast majority then returned to Morocco, but the agency estimated on August 16 that 5,000 to 8,000 migrants remained in the Spanish enclave, where accommodation capacity was overwhelmed.

Temporary Reception Capacities Still Provisional

The Spanish government announced on August 17 the opening of four temporary sites in Ceuta. This measure adds to an emergency declaration of 6.5 million euros prioritized for the Red Cross for humanitarian assistance. According to La Moncloa, around 4,000 food kits have been distributed daily since August 3, and more than 4,000 people have received socio-health assistance.

The care of minors remains one of the most sensitive points. On August 7, Minister Sira Rego told Reuters that 1,342 children had been registered in the reception system at that time, while specifying that the census was ongoing. The project concerning 500 girls responds, according to the ministry, to their particular vulnerability and the pressure on local structures.

The initiative has also reignited political conflict between the central government and the Popular Party. The president of Ceuta, Juan Jesús Vivas, and the leader of the PP, Alberto Núñez Feijóo, are calling for the return of migrants to Morocco, while the executive emphasizes that any decision regarding minors must respect the protection guarantees provided by Spanish law.

Just hours after the transfer, about 500 people returned to Trampolín beach, officially to retrieve their personal belongings. Cleaning services then temporarily suspended their operations, according to the Ceuta administration cited by El País.