Spanish military halts deportation of 12-year-old boy at Ceuta border after journalists intervene

The border incident

On 3 August, a 12-year-old boy was being escorted by Spanish soldiers toward the Moroccan border at Ceuta when his tearful resistance drew the attention of journalists and local residents. The child, wearing a yellow shorts and dark blue T-shirt, clung to a soldier’s neck and repeated in Arabic a phrase translated as “No, Morocco, no.” Several women at the scene helped interpret his words, and it became clear that the boy was alone, with no adult accompanying him.

The boy could barely speak, he was clinging to the woman and looking at us.

A lieutenant colonel arrived and, after learning the child was unaccompanied, ordered the transfer stopped. He told the soldiers that a child cannot be expelled alone under Spanish law. The boy was handed to the Guardia Civil and later to the Red Cross, who took him back into the city.

Legal protections for minors

Spanish legislation draws a sharp distinction between adult migrants and unaccompanied minors. Adults may request asylum and face expulsion if rejected, but minors who arrive without a guardian must be taken into the care of Spanish authorities and cannot be summarily returned. Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska underlined this principle.

In Spain, the fundamental rights of minors, as vulnerable individuals, are respected, just as those of adults are.

Save the Children sent a letter to the Interior and Defence ministries demanding guarantees that no child is returned without an individual assessment. The organisation’s migration specialist, Jennifer Zuppiroli, said there were indications that minors had been among those escorted to the border, and that any repatriation must follow the specific procedure set out in Spanish law.

We are especially concerned that there may be minors among the people transferred to the border. Before any return it is essential to identify each child and assess their situation individually, always guaranteeing their best interests.

Scale of the migration surge

The incident occurred against the backdrop of a mass arrival that began on 30 July, when around 72,000 people entered Ceuta irregularly in 24 hours, many swimming from neighbouring Morocco. By 4 August, the Spanish government said 69,500 had returned to Morocco, most escorted by authorities and some voluntarily. The city’s official figures showed 862 unaccompanied minors in reception centres and emergency facilities, though Save the Children put the number at over 1,000, noting that many who entered on 30 July had not yet sought assistance or were hiding. At least 44 people, mainly young people and minors, were reported missing by relatives.

Government and NGO responses

The Spanish government announced an extraordinary allocation of 25 million euros for Ceuta to care for unaccompanied minors. The Guardia Civil opened a missing persons office at the border customs post and provided an email address for reporting disappearances. Minister of Inclusion Elma Saiz did not disclose the total number of migrant children in the enclave.

Meanwhile, reporting by EL MUNDO described a system of two gates at the Tarajal border crossing: one for those brought by military trucks, labelled “voluntary” returns, and another for those arriving on foot. The newspaper witnessed a soldier escorting a girl of about 13 through the gate intended for voluntary returns, raising questions about how voluntariness is determined in practice.