69,500 Migrants Have Now Returned to Morocco, Exceeding Initial Estimates of 50,000. the Official Death Toll on the Spanish Side Stands

Spain estimates about 69,500 migrants have now returned to Morocco, exceeding initial estimates of 50,000. The official death toll on the Spanish side stands at 72, with 11 deaths on the Moroccan side. On Tuesday, EU interior ministers will hold emergency talks by video conference. In a letter to Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez, von der Leyen praised his "swift handling" of the crisis but said "we must do more to further strengthen our borders at critical points.

Italy temporarily suspended the Schengen arrangement with Spain, backed by Finland and Denmark, while Czech PM Andrej Babiš urged a temporary suspension of Spain's Schengen membership. Sánchez expressed "serious concerns" about some European governments, noting Ceuta was not part of the Schengen area. Von der Leyen warned that "the protection of all our external borders is a shared European responsibility, calling for "vigilant monitoring and the use of physical barriers where needed.

She urged the EU to "double down in five areas: preventing irregular migration, strengthening external borders, implementing early warning systems, dismantling smuggling networks, and reinforcing returns. Sánchez accused traffickers of exploiting a supreme court decision that constrained immediate deportations. Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska said the situation had almost returned to normal, with work on an inflatable barrier underway.