For weeks now, Ceuta has not only contained the migratory pressure but also faces violence that continues to grow. The autonomous city is experiencing an escalation of harassment that is beginning to overwhelm the response capacity of the security forces. Fights between groups of immigrants have intensified to become a daily scene in various parts of the city. Police sources place the number of confrontations at up to a dozen in a single day, a succession of violent episodes that, far from being isolated incidents, depict an increasingly open dispute for control of certain areas.
The confrontations occur between groups competing for territory and access to certain parts of the city. The brawls are frequent, one after another, and in some cases reach a special virulence. The men show open wounds on their bodies and the agents of the Police Intervention Unit (UIP) – the riot police – have seized numerous large bladed weapons.
The fights start over dominating a street. The shouting gives way to pushing, punching, and finally, bladed weapons appear. According to the Police, the immigrants do not hesitate to use them, causing serious injuries to their victims. Police interventions are constant but, in turn, another source of violence.
The immigrants, according to the agents’ complaints, throw stones at them from the moment they get out of the police vehicles. The arrival of the riot vans does not always serve to deter the opposing groups: in certain episodes, the agents are directly attacked, putting them on the ropes as they try to regain control of the situation. The concern of the police officials is no longer limited to the existence of altercations among the immigrants themselves. This scenario has caused serious injuries and has led the agents to intervene and seize numerous weapons used in these disputes. Knives and other sharp objects are used in these confrontations, which have progressively increased their level of violence.
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What increasingly worries the security forces is the effect this situation may have on the safety of the entire city and coexistence. The repetition of brawls, the presence of weapons, and the growing hostility towards the agents depict a particularly delicate scenario in a city that has been enduring extraordinary migratory pressure since the end of July.
The Police also face another added problem: the presence on the streets of people with police or judicial records who, despite having been subject to expulsion measures or entry bans to our country, reappear on Spanish territory.
One of the cases recently detected illustrates the difficulties they face every day. It involves a man who had up to three entry bans in Spain and was linked to crimes of burglary, assault, and violent episodes. His location ended up leading to a particularly complex police chase.
