Ceuta residents and port workers formed a human chain Tuesday to block a new government migrant shelter near the Spanish city’s port — the latest peaceful uprising against the socialist government’s response to the July invasion that turned their once-safe streets into open-air camps.
The Spanish central government has been racing to open the shelter near Ceuta’s west pier in recent days. Officials plan to house about 1,000 illegal migrants in the facility — mainly those still occupying the Benitéz and Trampolín beaches with shanty tents following the late July mass border breach.
Nearby residents and dock workers aren’t having it. They say the shelter threatens their safety and violates port regulations.
“We’re already fed up — and getting more and more fed up — with what’s happening in Ceuta.”
According to Spanish outlet El Faro de Ceuta, the transfer appears “imminent” — the tents are “practically prepared.”
That urgency drove locals to stage Tuesday evening’s protest. Demonstrators chanted pro-Ceuta slogans heard across Spain since the invasion began: “Ceuta is not for sale, Ceuta is defended,” and “Ceuta, united, will never be defeated.”
One protester, identified by El Faro de Ceuta as Miguel Ángel Oncina, condemned the “entire government with all its little cronies” for worsening conditions in the city.
Oncina told El Faro the “temporary” shelter violates existing port laws. He explained it poses a significant security risk — located near three fuel deposits, within 50 meters of a school, and near a transport ship.
“We are citizens of Ceuta, we’ve lived here our whole lives. We are hardworking people, we pay our taxes, we’ve done our military service; we have children; we have grandchildren; we are autonomous, and what we want is the freedom we used to have — which we’re losing, losing it completely,” the man told El Faro de Ceuta.
He didn’t mince words about what that freedom loss looks like on the ground.
“We can’t walk the streets why? Easy, because you might run into a thief, you might run into someone who assaults. They’re mistreating our elders, our women, our children, our grandchildren, and as you can understand, that shouldn’t be allowed in a country that’s supposed to be democratic.”
An unidentified woman who works in the port area told El Faro she and her co-workers now carry pepper spray.
“This is a danger to all of us because we have to go around with pepper spray in hand,” she said. “We are afraid, and cannot take it anymore.”
Tuesday’s demonstration is the latest in a series of peaceful protests staged by Ceuta residents. Many have rejected the continued presence of the remaining illegal immigrants and are demanding solutions to the deteriorating safety conditions in their city.
The community vows to keep protesting “every time we can,” Oncina said, emphasizing the government’s actions are “not normal.”
🚩 Protestas en el puerto de Ceuta por el nuevo asentamiento para inmigrantes#Ceuta #Inmigracion #FronteraSur #Marruecos #Protesta #Manifestaciones pic.twitter.com/ajJRuQ0mRp
— El Faro de Ceuta (@ElFarodeCeuta) September 15, 2026
