Spanish security sources revealed that authorities in the city of Ceuta confiscated what they described as the "equipment" of Moroccan migrants, which included knives, sickles, broken glass and hammers.
These tightened security measures come as part of a security campaign amid the unprecedented migration crisis that hit the city at the end of last July, in which about 80,000 migrants entered, thousands of whom are still stuck in the Spanish enclave.
Spain continues to pressure the European Union for emergency funding to address the repercussions of the crisis, with Madrid submitting a formal request for financial support to strengthen border protection and security infrastructure, and to provide adequate reception facilities for migrants, especially unaccompanied minors.
This security move comes less than two weeks after a mass crossing wave, during which tens of thousands managed to cross the border from Morocco to Ceuta in a random, collective manner within a few days, while calls on social media to carry out a new mass crossing have been repeated, prompting Moroccan authorities to take measures to counter any potential influx.
Cooperation between Madrid and Rabat has helped to thwart new attempts at irregular migration, according to the European Commission.
Estimates suggest that the death toll during the crossing wave reached at least 14 people, according to the National Human Rights Council in Morocco, while Spanish data spoke of 80 deaths.
