Spain’s King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia are scheduled to visit the North African enclave of Ceuta on Tuesday, a city that has long been billed as a symbol of coexistence between Muslim and Christian communities. The visit comes amid a migration crisis that has exposed deep cultural and religious fault lines. Roughly 80,000 people crossed the border from Morocco in late July after false online rumours that Spain had opened its gates, and up to 15,000 migrants remained in the city for weeks, putting pressure on local residents.
Many of the remaining migrants have taken refuge in Muslim neighbourhoods, sleeping on streets, in doorways, or in makeshift camps run by NGOs and residents. The strain has fueled frustration and conflict, with residents like Mohamed Susi of El Principe asking, “What do they want? That we feed all of Ceuta?” and demanding a solution. Volunteers from the Luna Blanca charity have been providing 3,000 to 5,000 meals a day, but have received threats and insults for their work.
Police and thousands of soldiers have been deployed to patrol the city centre and border areas, while regular protests have taken place outside the city government. About 200 demonstrators, mostly non‑Muslim, carried Ceuta’s black‑and‑white flag and banged pots and pans to express anger at what they describe as the Spanish government’s slow response. Local shopkeepers say coexistence has been frayed, with some Muslims protecting migrants and others questioning their loyalty.
The royals will also attend a ceremony at a Muslim cemetery to memorialise more than 140 migrants who died attempting the crossing in July. As the crisis enters its third month, residents like Emilio Muñoz have staged prolonged protests, sleeping in tents outside the city government and demanding action. Muñoz says he does not mock the migrants but acknowledges that a rift has appeared and that Ceuta must move forward.
