Nearly 3,000 minors remain in Ceuta as the government holds the PP responsible for the city's prolonged migration crisis. Alberto Núñez Feijóo and Juan Jesús Vivas oppose their transfer to mainland communities, and the dispute has entered its eighth week with no quick solution in sight. Spanish authorities and local media put the number of registered minors in the reception system at roughly 2,100 to 2,400. Hundreds more have yet to be identified and are reportedly sleeping rough.
Ángel Víctor Torres has toughened the government's message since Pedro Sánchez appointed him the sole official in charge of the crisis. Torres says the children cannot leave Ceuta because the PP refuses to receive them in the communities it governs. His criticism targets both Feijóo and the president of Ceuta.
Torres has challenged the opposition to show its support for the city through practical steps. The PP controls 11 autonomous communities, also to Ceuta and Melilla, and shares power in the Canary Islands. Madrid says the minors should either remain under Ceuta's protection through an agreement with the receiving community or move to other parts of Spain. The government says family reunification in Morocco should be considered when it is safe and properly verified. Other children should go to mainland Spain or remain under the protection of local authorities.
The political fight is blocking the question that needs an answer now: where the minors will live and who will take responsibility for them.
The PP's stated position is to expel all immigrants who entered irregularly. Feijóo and Vivas repeated that position on Monday with the support of Manfred Weber, the leader of the European PP. Génova describes the situation as hybrid warfare attributed to Morocco. It also warns that moving the young people could encourage another mass border crossing like the one on 30 and 31 July.
The political fight will continue this week. The PP and Vox are due to attend a Saturday demonstration in Madrid called by Sociedad Civil Española in defence of Spain. The protest will also call for new elections. Torres has asked the PP to hold fewer demonstrations and present a clear plan for housing the minors. The next demonstration is scheduled for 27 September. Ceuta is expected to become part of a wider fight over migration policy and early elections.
Authorities are trying to ease the pressure with new facilities and transfers. The Council of Ministers has approved €88 million for reception centres in Ceuta. About 1,700 immigrants were moved to port facilities last Friday after the Audiencia Nacional rejected an urgent request from the Sindicato Unificado de Policía to suspend their use as a camp. The government says more spaces will open this week and next. A separate government funding package provides €118 million for humanitarian reception, including €63.6 million specifically for the care of migrant minors. The funding is intended to expand protection and reception capacity, but it has not resolved the dispute over transfers from Ceuta.
Torres puts the current total at 6,000 adults in accommodation and 2,000 minors. The government has identified 2,321 minors. Between 500 and 600 are sleeping on the streets, and about 500 more have been registered in facilities meant for adults. Torres says they will be moved to suitable facilities when space is ready. The law does not allow adults and minors to share the same facilities. The Interior Ministry has separately referred to about 2,400 registered minors, counting children who arrived in the days before the mass border crossing on 30 and 31 July. The totals change depending on the date and category being counted; all point to a continuing shortage of space.
The adult caseload is moving faster. Since 10 August, 6,791 people have voluntarily returned to Morocco, including 222 on Monday and 1,309 during the past week. There have also been 318 expulsions. Torres says 26% of adults, mainly from the Maghreb, are not seeking international protection. Many return to Morocco after being told during registration that they are unlikely to qualify as refugees. The government is also trying to shorten the maximum 12-week period for deciding these cases.
The minors are harder to deal with. Family reunification is the government's priority, but Rabat has not answered more than 600 files over the past five years. Authorities so accept that reunification will not be possible in most cases. The immediate alternative is to distribute the children across Spain. The PP refuses to help with that plan. As Euronews reported, Rego has said most of the minors are expected to remain in Spain rather than be sent back automatically. Each case must still go through the required legal and individual assessment.
Ceuta is not dealing with a single administrative delay; the city is caught in a fight over who is responsible. Madrid is providing money and reception space, but it cannot move the minors without cooperation from Ceuta and the mainland communities. The PP is calling for returns while rejecting relocation. Children are still sleeping outside. With no agreement on their care, the political veto is prolonging the crisis as new arrivals continue to add pressure.
The dispute has also reached the European level. On 17 September, the European Parliament called for stronger protection of the European Union's external borders and faster returns for people who have no right to remain, including minors. It also said any action must comply with EU law and international obligations. That position adds pressure for faster procedures, but it does not remove the need for individual safeguards in children's cases.
The government's approach remains case by case: verified and safe family reunification where possible, with transfers to mainland Spain for others. Ceuta will continue to protect children when no immediate alternative exists. The open question is whether political authorities can agree on who will take responsibility before temporary accommodation and street homelessness put even more pressure on the city.
