Between 8,000 and 11,000 Migrants Remain in Ceuta, Raising Safety Concerns

Juan Jesús Vivas, president of Ceuta, said Saturday that 8,000 and 11,000 migrants remained in the Spanish city after the mass crossing from Morocco, sharply increasing the local government’s earlier estimate.

Officials also said more than 1,000 unaccompanied minors were still in Ceuta and could be transferred to mainland Spain. Vivas called the situation “unsustainable.”

The remaining migrants include people sleeping outdoors and searching for food, water and basic supplies. Ceuta’s local government said thousands were moving through the streets without shelter.

“We are very tired. To eat, to sleep, it’s very difficult here.”

Cesse Aliou, 25, from Senegal, described the conditions in Ceuta. Migrants have been seen sleeping on beaches, industrial estates and streets, some under blankets and others without any covering.

The pressure has overwhelmed the city’s reception system. The immediate challenge now involves shelter, food, public order and the transfer of minors.

Ceuta’s new count exceeds earlier estimates

Earlier figures from Ceuta officials placed the number of migrants still in the city between 3,000 and 5,000, including 862 minors. The latest local estimate is substantially higher.

The difference has exposed competing assessments of how many people remain after the mass arrival. Figures attributed to Spain’s Interior Ministry put the total at approximately 2,000-5,000, while Vivas continued to cite the larger range.

Both estimates describe a city struggling to absorb people who have not returned to Morocco or found another place to stay. Many remain in public areas.

The city’s reception centers have “collapsed” under the influx, local officials said. Those facilities were built to accommodate only a few hundred people, according to the available description of their capacity.

The local government described migrants as “wandering through the streets, sleeping in the shade, or trying to buy water, cigarettes, or something to eat.”

Migrants sleep outdoors as basic supplies run short

People have slept on El Trampolín beach and in public plazas. Reports also described shortages of food, blankets and sanitation.

Some migrants had gone as long as five days without food. Children were seen moving around Ceuta while looking for something to eat, water or a safe place to sleep.

The outdoor conditions expose people to sharp changes in temperature. One account described cold nights near the sea and unbearable heat during the day.

Aliou’s account captured the strain in a few words. “We are very tired,” he said. “To eat, to sleep, it’s very difficult here.”

The shortage of shelter has also made it harder for authorities to separate urgent child-protection needs from the wider population remaining in the city. Officials are seeking placements for minors while adults continue to occupy streets and open spaces.

Ceuta’s authorities have asked for help moving unaccompanied children to mainland Spain. The request reflects the city’s limited capacity after the arrival of tens of thousands of people.

Residents report fear as the city tries to reopen

Residents in some neighborhoods have used barricades and patrols described as ceasefire-like measures amid fears about insecurity. The reports add a public-order dimension to the humanitarian emergency.

Ceuta has about 84,000 residents. Most businesses had attempted to reopen by August 8, even as thousands of migrants remained without stable accommodation.

Vivas has urged Spain’s central government to accelerate returns to Morocco. He has presented returns as the only way to resolve the insecurity he associates with people wandering without shelter or basic necessities.

The local government’s description links the security concerns to the number of people left without resources, rather than to a specific incident. The reports describe fear in some neighborhoods and residents organizing their own presence on the streets.

The situation has therefore produced two immediate demands: placements for children and a wider decision on the adults who remain in Ceuta. Both depend on action beyond the city’s reception facilities.

Officials discuss mainland placements for minors

Sira Rego, Spain’s minister of Youth and Childhood, met Vivas on August 8 to discuss distributing unaccompanied minors to mainland Spain. The meeting focused on easing the pressure on Ceuta’s infrastructure.

Some estimates put minors at roughly 43% of the people still in the city. That proportion differs from the earlier count of 862 minors and from the newer figure issued by local officials.

The transfer question has become the clearest administrative response under discussion. Ceuta can request placements, but the larger population still needs accommodation, food and sanitation while decisions are made.

The child transfers also carry a separate protection concern. Children have been reported walking around the city in search of food, water and somewhere safe to sleep.

Officials have not described the transfer process as a solution for everyone remaining in Ceuta. The local government continues to press Madrid on returns and on the wider emergency.

Authorities monitor reports of another crossing

Raul Diaz, a spokesperson for Spain’s Interior Ministry, said Spanish authorities were monitoring social media for a possible second crossing wave planned for August 15, 2026.

The National Police and Civil Guard are involved in the monitoring. Authorities have also focused on reports involving a Facebook group called “Migration to Ceuta Inshallah.”

The alert adds a forward-looking security concern while the city deals with the people already there. Officials are watching for another mass attempt before the current accommodation crisis has eased.

The 2026 surge has been described as the largest in Ceuta’s history, exceeding the major May 2021 incident when 8,000-10,000 people entered the enclave. Analysts linked the latest movement to social media campaigns on TikTok and WhatsApp and to a perceived easing of border controls on Morocco’s side.

Analysts also suggested that the timing may have been connected to diplomatic movements, including Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez’s visit to Algeria in July 2024. The local government’s immediate focus, however, remains the people sleeping outdoors and the minors awaiting transfer.

August 15 is now the next date cited in the authorities’ monitoring effort. Ceuta must address that warning while its reception centers remain under pressure.