About: Morocco
Morocco, Spain trade accusations of violating good ‘neighbourliness’
Morocco and Spain traded new accusations on Monday (31 May) in a diplomatic row triggered by the Western Sahara territorial issue that led this month to a migration crisis in Spain's enclave in northern Morocco.
At EU summit, Spain warns of ‘unprecedented crisis with Morocco’
Spain sent a clear message to Morocco Monday (24 May), insisting on respect for its shared borders a week after over 8,000 migrants entered its Ceuta enclave, with 1,000 minors still there.
Morocco shuts off border crossing to Spain amid record migrant influx
Moroccan border guards on Wednesday sealed off the crossing into Ceuta following two days of an abrupt migrant crisis that saw over 8,000 people illegally enter the Spanish enclave. EURACTIV’s partner EFE reports.
Migration crisis on Spanish-Moroccan border sparks diplomatic row
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez has pledged to safeguard the territorial integrity of the Spanish exclaves of Ceuta and Melilla after 6,000 migrants from Morocco entered Spanish territory, EURACTIV’s partner EFE reports.
Record 5,000 migrants reach Spain’s Ceuta enclave in one day
At least 5,000 migrants, about a thousand of them minors, reached Spain’s North African enclave of Ceuta on Monday (17 May) from neighbouring Morocco, Spanish officials said, a record in a single day. A spokesman for the Spanish government delegation...
Migrant crossings down 13% in 2020 due to Covid
The number of illegal border crossings into the European Union fell by 13% to around 124,000 last year, the EU's border agency said Friday (8 January).
Turkey bolsters influence across North Africa’s Maghreb
Turkey is boosting its influence across North Africa, analysts say, intervening militarily in war-torn Libya and using "soft power", trade and investment in Tunisia, Algeria and Morocco.
Polisario suffers setback as EU Parliament group leader resigns over ceasefire
The campaign for Western Saharan independence has suffered another diplomatic blow after the head of the European Parliament’s group on Western Sahara resigned, accusing the pro-independence Frente Polisario of committing ‘a serious strategic error’ by ending a 30-year ceasefire with Morocco.
Morocco rebuffs EU request to re-admit third-country migrants
Morocco has rebuffed a European Union request to take back third-party nationals who reach Europe from the North African kingdom, its interior ministry said on Tuesday (15 December).
Morocco looks forward to ‘big prize’ for normalising ties with Israel
Morocco’s decision to normalise ties with Israel has handed Rabat its biggest step yet towards the prize it values most - global recognition of its claim to Western Sahara.
Borrell urges return to talks following renewed Western Sahara tensions
The Polisario Front said Sunday (15 November) it was mobilising "thousands of volunteers" to join its fighters, on the third day of a crisis in the disputed Western Sahara that pits the Sahrawis against Morocco.
Hundreds of African migrants reach Canary Islands
More than 1,600 African migrants have landed on Spain's Canary Islands over a two-day period, a rate last seen a decade ago, emergency services said Sunday.
Spain wants jobless, immigrants to cover farm shortfall
Spain moved on Tuesday (7 April) to tackle a shortfall of farm workers due to the coronavirus crisis by authorising the temporary hiring of tens of thousands of immigrants or jobless people.
Belgian MEP criticises ‘xenophobic sauce’ in discourse over coronavirus crisis
As the debate over distribution of EU funds continues in Belgium, nationalist New Flemish Alliance (N-VA) and Vlaams Belang parties are consciously spreading disinformation about the coronavirus crisis and spicing it up with 'xenophobic sauce', Belgian MEP Parliament Kathleen Van Brempt (SP.A/S&D) criticised in a statement.
Morocco shuts off Spain’s Ceuta and Melilla enclaves over virus
Morocco closed the border with Ceuta and Melilla, Spain's two North African enclaves, early on Friday (13 March) to prevent the spread of the deadly coronavirus, officials said.
Rights court clears Spain over Melilla migrant pushbacks
Spain committed no violation when it expelled migrants trying to force their way onto EU territory by scaling fences in a North African enclave, the European Court of Human Rights ruled Thursday (13 Fenruary). The ruling, which reverses an earlier...
Morocco border clampdown thwarts Europe-bound migrants
Mustapha left his home in Guinea two years ago to make the arduous journey to Morocco, hoping to cross the fence separating the kingdom from the Spanish enclave of Ceuta.
Police bust ring smuggling Moroccans to Spain via Gibraltar
Police in Spain and Gibraltar have smashed an unusual migrant-smuggling network which flew Moroccans into the tiny British territory then sneaked them over the border to Spain, arresting 47 people.
Spain returns migrants to Morocco after storming of Melilla enclave
Spain sent 55 migrants back to Morocco on Monday (22 October), a day after they forced their way into the Spanish territory of Melilla during an assault on the border in which two migrants died and 19 were injured.
France-Italy tensions as ministers meet on immigration
French Prime Minister Edouard Philippe urged far-right Italian leader Matteo Salvini on Monday (8 October) to drop his "posturing" on immigration and help find a European response to the issue.
Sakharov Prize nominees include NGOs in the Mediterranean
The nominees for the 2018 Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought have been announced on Thursday (27 September), including Oleg Sentsov, the Ukrainian film director imprisoned in Russia and NGOs saving lives of migrants in the Mediterranean. Since 1988, THE...
Morocco plays cat and mouse with Africans headed to Europe
African emigrants are defying a campaign by Morocco to keep them away from land and sea crossings to Spain, which has become the main entry point to Europe for migrants and refugees following crackdowns elsewhere.
Is it ‘the economy, stupid’ in the EU’s southern neighbourhood?
While trade wars threaten across the Atlantic, enhanced economic cooperation could be the key to stability in the EU’s southern neighbourhood.