Many people try to enter the EU via the Melilla exclave. Several people have died trying to get over the border fence. There are serious allegations against the security forces.
After the death of at least 18 people in the rush of migrants to the Spanish exclave of Melilla in Morocco, there are serious allegations against the security forces.
The Moroccan authorities had used “unjustified violence” and “abused” migrants, said the head of the Moroccan Association for Human Rights (AMDH) in the city of Nador, Amin Abidar, on Saturday of the German Press Agency. People were left trapped on the ground for hours without medical help. Some died doing it.
Uniformed use batons
The human rights organization distributed videos showing how dozens of migrants – surrounded by security forces – are crammed together on the ground in a confined space. A man is taken away with blood on his head. A recording shows a man in uniform hitting a man lying on the ground with a baton. The recordings were made by activists and sympathizers, Abidar explained. He called for the incidents to be investigated quickly and independently in order to find those responsible.
Up to 2,000 people tried to climb the border fence between Morocco and Melilla on Friday. 18 migrants were killed, as reported by Morocco’s state news agency MAP, citing local authorities. They died in the crowd or fell off the fence. AMDH, on the other hand, spoke of 27 deaths. In addition, dozens of migrants and 140 security forces were injured. The Moroccan Interior Ministry accused the migrants of using violence. The people came from African countries south of the Sahara.
