Several migrants make their way to the Temporary Immigrant Center (CETI), after jumping the fence of Melilla, on June 24, 2022, in Melilla, Spain. | Source: Europa Press News / Getty
Video footage has emerged on social media to provide graphic images of the widely reported deaths of African migrants who attempted to cross the border from Morocco into Spain over the weekend.
The reported death toll in what’s being described as a Spanish enclave in the North African city of Melilla has varied between 18 and 23 people, but the videos circulating online suggest those numbers are exponentially low as the footage reportedly filmed on Friday shows dozens and dozens of bodies of apparent Africans piled on top of one another in a sprawling dirt field. The footage also shows the barbaric treatment of the migrants at the hands of local authorities.
One video that was tweeted by Southern African Eye, which describes itself as “an independent news network,” posted footage showing “Moroccan police in full riot gear pelting migrants with rocks as they attempt to jump the Spanish border fence.” The tweet estimated that “at least 87” people had died with “many more injured.”
Despite the catastrophic number of deaths and injuries, Spanish prime minister Pedro Sánchez had glowing words for the “extraordinary work” addressing what he called “an attack on the territorial integrity of our country.”
Melilla is one of the European Union’s only two land borders with Africa.
This picture was taken on June 25, 2022, in Melilla and shows the border between northern Morocco and the Spanish enclave, a day after at least 23 African migrants died in a bid by around 2000 people, mostly sub-Saharan African, to force their way into Europe. | Source: FADEL SENNA / Getty
The African Union is leading calls for an investigation into the carnage and violent response to the border crossing that the New York Times reported was successfully made by at least 130 migrants. About 2,000 total migrants tried to cross the border, and “many” of them “fell to their deaths after trying to scale the border fence, while 76 others, as well as 140 Moroccan security officers, had been injured,” the Times also reported.
A press release from the African Union Commission said Chairperson H.E. Moussa Faki Mahamat expressed “deep shock and concern at the violent and degrading treatment of African migrants attempting to cross an international border from Morocco into Spain.”
The press release added: “The Chairperson calls for an immediate investigation into the matter, and reminds all countries of their obligations under international law to treat all migrants with dignity and to prioritize their safety and human rights, while refraining from the use of excessive force.”
Source: Graphic Video Shows African Migrants ‘Beaten And Killed’ Trying To Cross Border Into Spain
