An enclave is a territory that is entirely surrounded by the territory of only one other state or entity. It can be an independent territory or part of a larger one. One such enclave that gained international attention on July 30 was Ceuta, Spain, a peninsula located on the coast of the North Africa country of Morocco.

On that day, upwards of 60,000 Moroccans crossed the Ceuta border to escape a life of poverty and no jobs in their home country. At least 72 Moroccans reportedly lost their lives in a stampede or by drowning.

According to most reports, when faced with the prospects of no food, water or shelter, almost all the people who crossed into Ceuta were physically forced back home either by land or water.

Spain’s colonization is root cause

Morocco, now with a population over 38 million people, was a colony of Spain from 1912 until 1956. Once formal independence was won, Morocco, similar to other African countries enslaved by rich European capitalist countries, struggled to develop its own indigenous infrastructure and economy to meet the needs of its population, especially in rural areas.

According to Morocco’s High Commission for Planning, “In 2024, about 72% of people living in poverty were in the countryside, compared to 79% in 2014. Rural poverty decreased from 23.6% to 13.1%, but this is still more than four times the poverty rate in urban areas, which stood at just 3% in 2024.” (Moroccan World News, May 22, 2025)

This reality was substantiated by Moroccans attempting to cross the border by swimming for hours. Twenty-eight-year-old Younes Murad said:  “Our families are poor. There’s no jobs in Morocco. I have a college degree and no job.” Khadija Almoufi, 20, who helps support her family said: “There’s poverty everywhere. I want to live a wonderful life. There are no services in Morocco or money.” (Washington Post, Aug. 1)

At the heart of this crisis is the ongoing dispute over who should control Ceuta — Morocco or Spain. Geographically, this enclave is located within Morocco close to the Strait of Gibraltar that separates the two countries. Morocco certainly has a legitimate claim to Ceuta.

An international crisis

The events of July 30 and the aftermath did not happen in a bubble. They reflect the ongoing crisis of millions of migrants located in the poorer Global South hoping to find a better life for themselves and their families in the richer Global North. For decades and even centuries, the ruling classes of European capitalist countries, like Spain, became wealthy off the backs of stolen labor and resources of African countries like Morocco by violent repression and occupation.

The situation is very similar to what is happening in the U.S., especially along the southern border, with migrants risking their lives coming by land from countries to the South like Mexico and Guatemala and from Haiti in the Caribbean. The white supremacist White House government has declared a racist war on migrants of color by unleashing their attack dogs in the guise of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) armed and masked agents and the murderous Border Patrol. This war has led to illegal raids, detentions, separation of families and deaths of migrants and solidarity activists.

Incidents like the one in Ceuta are not going away. The crisis will continue to deepen for migrants as the global capitalist economic situation deteriorates across all borders, many of which were artificially created by imperialist plunder in the first place.

The International Action Center promotes solidarity with all migrants, who are an integral sector of the global working class. We say that the billionaires in the ruling class who profit off of the exploitation of the workers are illegal, not migrants. Open up the borders!