Record 2,700 migrants reach Spain's Ceuta enclave in a single day

At least 2,700 migrants, in regards to a thousand of these minors, reached Spain's North African enclave of Ceuta on Mon (May 17), Spanish officials said, a record in a single day. A spokesman for the Spanish federal government delegation in Ceuta stated the numbers arriving Mon were unprecedented. The migrants got reached the enclave by swimming or going for walks at low tide from beaches in neighboring Morocco, he added. None have been hospitalized and "they happen to be successful", he said. Through the morning, the delegation put the quantity at 100 arrivals, declaring they were mostly young men but also included children and some women who had employed inflatable swimming rings and rubber dinghies. Others could actually practically walk there when the tide went, the spokesman informed AFP, with the quantities climbing rapidly during the day.

The influx seemed to have stopped by 1800 GMT, he said.

After being checked by the Crimson Cross, the migrants were taken up to a migrant reception centre, with authorities set to meet to discuss the way to handle the problem given the record arrivals.

Videos posted on community media showed the stream of migrants - some using just beachwear but others clad in normal outdoor clothes - setting off from rocky beachheads.

At first, Moroccan law enforcement looked on, before moving to push back a gathering crowd of onlookers.