The Spanish government has made family reunification a priority in its response to the crisis involving unaccompanied migrant minors in Ceuta. Hundreds of children who arrived from Morocco at the end of July were waiting near police facilities to register and find shelter. Official facilities could accommodate 29 minors, while the number of registered young migrants had reached approximately 1,400, Minister for Territorial Policy Ángel Víctor Torres said.
The scale of the July influx was immense. Reuters reported that more than 70,000 people entered Ceuta from Morocco on 30-31 July; Torres estimated that around 80,000 had entered irregularly during the surge. Most were adults who subsequently returned, while thousands remained, including unaccompanied minors. During his visit to Ceuta, Torres met city president Juan Jesús Vivas and acknowledged the pressure on local services. Young people were also documented sleeping on pavements near police headquarters while awaiting registration.
By 21 October, Spain’s public broadcaster RTVE reported that Ceuta’s protection system was caring for 3,331 minors. Two days later, La Vanguardia reported a figure of approximately 3,390. The reports described a growing caseload, with counts reflecting different reporting dates and administrative categories. As of 20 October, the Spanish government said no minor had been reunited with relatives in Morocco. The figures underline the distinction between adult returns, handled by the basic state, and the care of unaccompanied children, which falls primarily under Ceuta’s autonomous authorities.
Torres has described family reunification in Morocco as the priority, while acknowledging that some children may not want to return. He has also invoked the best-interests-of-the-child principle and identified transfers to other Spanish regions as an alternative when return is not feasible or accepted. Spain’s structure includes transfers to other autonomous communities under Article 35 of the Immigration Law. RTVE reported that 181 minors had been relocated to other communities and 107 reunited with relatives in mainland Spain; Reuters reported that 262 minors had been transferred to mainland Spain by October. These figures refer to different reporting and administrative categories. Spain had also sent files to Morocco to pursue family reunification, but none had been resolved by the later October reports.
Morocco’s response is basic to the cross-border process. The Spain-Morocco structure provides for children to return to their families or enter Morocco’s protection system, but Spanish requests concerning the minors arriving in July remained unanswered in October reporting. Ceuta had opened as many as 12 extraordinary facilities since 1 August to accommodate adolescents. The continuing caseload has so required immediate shelter alongside longer-term decisions about each child’s care and placement.
The crisis has also prompted widespread local frustration. Hours before Torres’s visit, residents took part in one of Ceuta’s largest recent protests, calling on the Spanish government and European institutions for urgent support and additional resources, while demanding stronger border controls. Demonstrators also demanded the resignation of the government delegate in Ceuta and voiced support for Vivas. Many residents said they felt abandoned by national authorities.
To ease the pressure, Torres announced a 50% increase in staff at the Government Delegation to speed up administrative work. Security forces were also being reinforced, with a 40% rise in Guardia Civil personnel and nearly 30% more National Police and military personnel deployed. Authorities were assessing possible additional accommodation, including the former military hospital, pending health and safety checks. The immediate need for safe shelter remains distinct from the longer process of registration and individual assessments, followed by placement.
Ceuta’s efforts to protect vulnerable minors predate the latest surge. In recent weeks, local women have stepped in to shelter migrant girls amid reports of sexual violence, as described in coverage of the challenges facing unprotected migrant girls in Ceuta. The government’s emphasis on family reunification is intended to address children’s circumstances while relieving pressure on local services, but the process depends on coordination with Moroccan authorities and decisions made in each child’s best interests.
Spanish law requires authorities to protect and care for minors found on national territory, regardless of migration status. The July crossings exposed the limits of Ceuta’s local capacity and left the city managing a large child-protection caseload alongside an urgent accommodation need. Spain’s response now combines cross-border family-reunification efforts with domestic placement, including reunification with relatives in mainland Spain and transfers to other autonomous communities. By late October, the cross-border requests remained unresolved, leaving domestic protection and placement measures basic to the immediate response.
