European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said on Saturday that the overwhelming majority of migrants who entered Spain’s North African enclave of Ceuta illegally have now returned to Morocco, following coordinated action by Spanish and Moroccan authorities.
In a post on X, von der Leyen said the joint efforts of law enforcement agencies had prevented the crisis from spreading beyond Ceuta.
“The good news is that the vast majority of those who arrived illegally have returned to Morocco, due to the effective work of Spanish and Moroccan law enforcement. Not a single person reached mainland Spain or the rest of the EU,” she wrote.
Von der Leyen said she had held a conference call with European Commissioner for Internal Affairs and Migration Magnus Brunner and European Commissioner for the Mediterranean Dubravka Suica to review the situation.
She described the incident as a reminder of the importance of protecting the EU’s external borders.
“This shows why the control of our European borders matters. We have a strong system in place. But it needs to be further strengthened,” she said.
The Commission president stressed the need for continued vigilance at key entry points, closer coordination among European authorities and a review of the bloc’s response to strengthen future resilience.
She also said the European Commission had offered support to Spain from the outset and welcomed calls by several European leaders for an extraordinary meeting of EU interior ministers to discuss the migration crisis.
According to Spain’s Interior Ministry, at least 67 people died attempting to reach Spain during the crisis, while nearly 70,000 migrants who entered Ceuta from Morocco have since returned.