Moroccan Justice Minister Abdellatif Ouahbi has refused to accept the bodies of 85 drowned migrants from Ceuta unless Spain returns 2,500 unaccompanied Moroccan minors.
The deceased are currently held in an improvised mortuary in Ceuta, a Spanish autonomous city located on the North African coast, following a major border crossing at the end of July.
Ouahbi claimed that authorities in Morocco do not distinguish between the living and the dead, making the transfer of the 85 bodies conditional on the immediate repatriation of the children.
The minister also demanded the handover of Spanish sovereign territories in North Africa to Moroccan control, asserting claims over areas that predated the establishment of the monarchy in the region.
Dispute Over Child Repatriation
Government census figures in Spain indicate that approximately 2,500 unaccompanied children entered Ceuta during the late July influx. Young migrants crossed seeking personal safety, with teenage girls documented hiding beneath Spanish National Police vehicles to avoid sexual assault.
Although Minister Ouahbi offered buses to transport the children back across the border, Spanish legal frameworks assign subsidiary legal responsibility for child protection directly to the state. Under international conventions on the rights of the child, Spanish authorities must verify that living, safety, and health standards in Morocco are adequate before any child can be returned.
Furthermore, the minors themselves have strongly opposed returning across the border. Catholic religious orders, including the charity founded by Mother Teresa of Calcutta, run shelters in the Moroccan city of Tangier for homeless girls and vulnerable women, documenting local living conditions directly.
Historical Record and Political Stance
Official data from Spain's State Attorney General's Office reveals that Morocco has consistently declined minor returns. Between 2009 and 2024, the latest year with published official statistics, Rabat did not accept a single return out of more than 30,000 Moroccan minors assisted by Spanish authorities.
Political commentators view Ouahbi's aggressive claims as a calculated strategy for domestic consumption in Morocco, exploiting policy difficulties facing the administration of Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez.
The minister's confrontational approach has drawn comparisons to Spanish Transport Minister Oscar Puente, who is known in Spain for aggressive political exchanges. Observers expect Madrid to transfer adult migrants to the Iberian peninsula while retaining custody of the minors, though some note that any future leadership change involving Puente could alter Spain's stance.
