Spain has requested the assistance of the European Border and Coast Guard Agency (Frontex) in handling cases involving migrants in the North African exclave of Ceuta. The request, made on Friday, came nearly a month after tens of thousands of people crossed the border from Morocco within a short span of time.

Spanish Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska asked Beate Gminder, the European Commission's Director-General for Migration and Home Affairs, for Frontex's help in controlling migrants who are staying in the exclave illegally. Spain has also requested the deployment of 10 additional Frontex officers.

According to authorities, between 5,000 and 8,000 people remain in Ceuta out of at least 72,000 who crossed the border from Morocco at the end of July. During that crossing, 82 migrants died on the Spanish side of the border, while Morocco confirmed a further 14 deaths.

The request comes amid rising tensions in Ceuta, where residents have staged protests demanding that the migrants leave. Tents used by migrants on one of the beaches have been targeted in attacks, with some set on fire.

On Thursday, 12 migrants were detained after attacking a military vehicle with stones, an incident in which one soldier and four migrants were injured. Eleven of those detained were subsequently deported from Ceuta, the daily El País reported on Friday, citing sources at the local court. Local residents also clashed with police on Thursday.

(Reuters, im)