Eight Charities File Rights Complaint Over Ceuta Returns

Nearly three months after a mass crossing from Morocco overwhelmed Ceuta, thousands of migrants remained in difficult conditions, with families and unaccompanied minors among those awaiting decisions on their status. The crisis is illustrated by Fatna, a pregnant woman who arrived with her disabled son and whose newborn daughter needs specialist treatment on mainland Spain, but whose family needs a permit to travel while her asylum claim is pending. Humanitarian groups, including Amnesty International and Oxfam, have accused Spanish authorities of forced or inadequately assessed returns and of denying some migrants access to legal help and interpreters; they warn that accelerated procedures could violate protection rights. Spain says its return program follows the rules and reports that about 12,000 people have returned voluntarily to Morocco, while authorities expand asylum processing and return decisions. The dispute has become a test of Spain’s humanitarian obligations and the EU’s migration rules, amid political pressure to clear the backlog.