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Date Published: 29/12/2021
ARCHIVED - Thirteen officers injured as migrants storm Melilla border
Guardia Civil agents were attacked with rocks and sticks as they protected the Spanish border
Several Guardia Civil agents were injured in the early hours of Wednesday December 29 in Melilla when around 500 migrants attempted to scale the border into the Spanish city. According to official sources, the Moroccan security forces worked with the Spanish to ensure that no illegal migrants breached the fence, but officers on both sides were met with “extreme violence” and attacked with sticks, hooks and rocks.
Shortly after 4am, around 400 sub-Saharan Africans attempted to cross the border to Spain in the vicinity of Chinatown, at which point a Guardia Civil helicopter was deployed and the National and Local Police stepped in to help.
At 6.30am, a second group of 100 slipped past the Moroccan forces and managed to reach the dividing fence, but their efforts were thwarted by the Spanish officers.
The coordination and joint action of the Moroccan Security Forces and the Guardia Civil, according to a government spokesperson, neutralised the situation and prevented any migrants from making it across the border into Spain.
Officials confirmed that thirteen Guardia Civil officers were injured in the fray and several were taken to hospital as a precautionary measure.
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