No one expected a small city of just 19 square kilometres to become the epicentre of a humanitarian and diplomatic crisis whose repercussions stretch across southern Europe.
In the space of a few hours on Thursday, Ceuta saw thousands of migrants enter from Moroccan territory, marking the largest mass crossing the city has experienced since the 2021 crisis.
Ceuta officials said some 60,000 migrants entered the city, and the human cost was also high, with the death toll rising to 34 people by Friday afternoon, according to Spain's interior ministry.
Videos filmed on Ceuta's Tarajal beach reveal the chaos that accompanied the crossings, showing large crowds running between the breakwater and the roads around the border area.
Most of the new arrivals were young people, but the footage also showed women with children and entire families, on a journey fraught with the risk of drowning and exhaustion.
