Spain’s Federal Police Union warned Sunday that police operations in Ceuta have reached an “absolute collapse,” demanding immediate reinforcements as officers contend with surging asylum cases, extended shifts and worsening security conditions following the late July migrant influx.
By yourNEWS Media Newsroom.
Spain’s Federal Police Union sounded a new alarm Sunday over conditions in Ceuta, saying the North African exclave’s police forces have been pushed beyond their operational limits after weeks of sustained pressure from a large influx of illegal migrants and asylum seekers.
The union, known as the UFP, escalated its calls for assistance after a police officer assigned to immigration duties suffered a heart attack over the weekend and was admitted to an intensive care unit. The union has attributed the medical emergency to what it described as the “brutal level of stress and pressure” officers are experiencing while handling soaring asylum requests and other migration-related responsibilities.
According to El Pueblo de Ceuta, the UFP said the consequences of the late July influx now extend far beyond immigration processing, with police resources strained by heightened demands involving public safety, violent incidents and other pressures on local services.
The union has called on Spain’s socialist central government to immediately deploy additional personnel to the enclave, where some officers are working prolonged shifts to process asylum claims and return procedures while also responding to security incidents.
Spanish National Police Inspector Serafín Giraldo, who heads the UFP, told Antena 3 that the officer who suffered the heart attack had been working at an immigration office responsible for processing asylum applications.
Giraldo said officers assigned there are routinely working from “08:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m.,” with some required to take double shifts extending beyond 15 hours in a single day.
He said the pace has left officers with too little time to recover between shifts and warned that the current staffing model is unsustainable.
“Reinforcements are urgently needed. The system has completely collapsed; the Ceuta Immigration Office has very few resources, both human and material,” Giraldo said.
He also said asylum applications filed in Ceuta and return procedures have “increased in an extraordinary manner,” adding further pressure to personnel already working under extreme conditions.
The UFP has also raised concerns about deteriorating security for residents, particularly at night.
According to El Faro de Ceuta, the union says current police staffing is insufficient to deal with the range of incidents officers are confronting, including altercations, fires, robberies, brawls and violent assaults.
Since the late July influx, police have responded to incidents involving stabbings, home invasions and serious injuries, according to the union. Officers have also encountered violent individuals carrying sticks, knives, machetes and pellet guns.
The UFP further warned that police and military personnel themselves have been targeted during some confrontations and said insufficient staffing can place officers at heightened risk when responding to large-scale disturbances.
“The UFP maintains that there have already been attacks against members of the State Security Forces and the military, and warns of the risk involved in intervening in large-scale brawls without, it claims, having sufficient personnel to ensure the officers’ safety,” El Faro de Ceuta wrote.
The union said the strain began after thousands of illegal migrants entered the Spanish exclave in late July, creating a continuing crisis involving immigration processing, law enforcement capacity, healthcare services and public safety.
Police resources have since been divided between processing large numbers of asylum claims and return cases while also answering calls involving crime and disorder, leaving the union to argue that the situation can no longer be managed with existing staffing.
The UFP’s latest warning centers on what it describes as a system operating without enough personnel, equipment or recovery time for officers tasked with maintaining order and processing migration cases.
With one officer now hospitalized after suffering a heart attack and others continuing to work extended shifts, the union is pressing Madrid for immediate reinforcements before staffing shortages and operational pressures further weaken Ceuta’s police response.
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