Woman busted smuggling teen refugee inside suitcase as 500 African migrants storm border with Spain

ERICGOSSIP —Nearly 500 African migrants pushed their way across
the border fence Friday morning from Morocco into the
Spanish enclave of Ceuta, one of two Spanish enclaves in North
Africa, a Spanish police source told media.

About 700 migrants amassed near the border early Friday
before storming the fence, and 498 migrants managed to
 cross into Spanish territory, the source said.

The others were stopped by the Moroccan military and by
Spanish and Moroccan authorities, the source added.


Social media video provided to a local station shortly after the
migrants arrived shows many celebrating while running through
the streets. Other videos show barefoot and bare-chested
migrants shouting "Viva España!" A few migrants had flags of the
European Union and Spain draped over their backs. Some could
be seen kissing the ground.

Eleven Spanish Civil guards were hurt trying to stop the migrants, the
source said. Three had to be taken to a local hospital.

The 498 migrants are receiving assistance from the Spanish Red Cross at
a Temporary Migrant Center in Ceuta, the agency said in a statement.

The Red Cross said 18 migrants had to be treated at a local hospital after being hurt while crossing the border.

Desperate attempts to cross

Ceuta, along with the province of Melilla to the east, are Europe's
only land borders in Africa. Both enclaves have long been popular
transit points for sub-Saharan African migrants trying to cross the
sea at the narrow point south of Spain.

At least 800 African migrants tried to storm a border fence into
Ceuta from Morocco on New Year's Day, Reuters reported , citing
the Spanish and Moroccan governments .

Most of the migrants that day were prevented from entering
Spanish territory. A handful of migrants scaled the 6-meter-high
barbed-wire fence but were eventually removed by cranes,
Reuters reported. Dozens of Moroccan security agents were
injured in the incident, along with five Spanish police officers.

A young woman was arrested in December 2016 after being
caught trying to smuggle a 19-year-old African migrant into Ceuta
in her suitcase. The man was treated for lack of sufficient oxygen
inside the compact travel bag, Spain's Civil Guard said in a
statement.


This creative but dangerous method of concealment is one of
several desperate approaches to illegal smuggling that the
Spanish Civil Guard has faced on the Ceuta border.

Two migrants -- a man and a woman -- from Guinea were also
rescued in December after authorities discovered them hidden
inside the dashboard and the backseat of a Volkswagen Golf, the
Spanish Civil Guard said. A Moroccan man driving the car, which
had been stolen, was arrested, officials said.