The delegate of the Government of Melilla announced the return of a first group of 200 people to Moroccan territory

Cientos de migrantes varados en Melilla, repatriados a Marruecos

AFP/ANTONIO SEMPERE - Moroccan nationals stranded in Spain since the closure of the borders in mid-March to deal with the coronavirus

Updated: 29/06/23

According to Cadena Ser in Melilla, King Mohammed VI of Morocco issued a royal order last Friday to transfer the 320 Moroccan citizens who had been stranded in the Melilla bullring. The repatriation will be carried out by the Moroccan Ministry of the Interior and will be done in stages, according to the radio station.

The government delegate in the Autonomous City, Sabrina Moh, announced on Tuesday that this Wednesday the border with Morocco will be opened so that a first group of 200 Moroccans trapped by the closure of the borders on 13 March unilaterally by Rabat as a result of the COVID-19 can return to their homes.

The same operation is expected to be repeated on Friday 2 October and Sunday 4. "From the Government Delegation we will contact these people to arrange a meeting with them on the day and time scheduled for their return," Moh reported.

This measure, according to the delegate, seeks to ensure that the health recommendations are complied with and that all those who wish to return to Morocco will be able to do so, whether or not they are in the facilities provided by Melilla.

The first group will have as a priority the vulnerable group. According to the government delegate, each migrant departure will have a period of 48 hours, which is the time that the Moroccan health authorities need to carry out COVID-19 tests on their nationals in order to comply with their country's health recommendations.

"All those who provided their contact details and told us they wanted to return to Morocco will be able to do so, but it is very important that they do so following the instructions of the Spanish authorities and only go to the border of Beni-Enzar when called upon to do so," said Moh.

Since the border closure that preceded the state of alarm decree in March, some 700 Moroccans have been trapped in Melilla. In May, Spain and Morocco agreed to repatriate up to 200 nationals from Melilla and a further 300 from Ceuta.
In August, the government delegations of the two autonomous cities announced the preparation of a protocol for reopening the border.

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