Italy Extends Border Curbs with Spain a Month after Migrant Rush

Reuters

Migrants attempting to evade Spanish police in Ceuta, Spain, 1 August.

Italy said on Monday that it would extend the suspension of its open-border arrangements with Spain for another 15 days, prolonging restrictions introduced after a mass influx of migrants into the Spanish enclave of Ceuta a month ago.

The suspension of the European Union’s passport-free Schengen arrangements was due to expire on Monday. Rome’s right-wing government said the measure was introduced to prevent migrants who entered Ceuta from travelling onwards to Italy.

The decision to extend the suspension "was taken ... due to the persistence of the factors that had led to the reintroduction of the measures on Aug. 1," Italy's interior ministry said in a statement.

Spanish authorities say between 5,000 and 8,000 people remain in Ceuta after at least 72,000 migrants crossed from neighbouring Morocco on 30 July.

At least 82 migrants were found dead on the Spanish side of the border, while Morocco confirmed a further 14 deaths.

Italy’s Interior Ministry said Rome was aware of “the steps already undertaken by Spain, together with the European Union, to help bring the situation in the area back to normal in the near future”.

Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, who has adopted a hard-line stance on irregular migration, is facing pressure from the newly formed far-right party Futuro Nazionale, whose rhetoric is gaining traction among some voters ahead of elections due next year.

The centre-left opposition criticised the decision to reinstate border checks, arguing that the measure was unnecessary because there was no indication that migrants in Ceuta intended to travel to Italy. It also warned that the move could undermine relations with Spain.

Source: Reuters



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