Spanish police clear migrant camp on Ceuta beach ahead of royal visit

Oct 4 - Spanish police on Sunday cleared a migrant camp on a beach in the North African enclave of Ceuta, where tens of thousands crossed the border from Morocco over two months ago, the Spanish government said.

More than 72,000 crossed the border from Morocco into Ceuta in late July. While most of the migrants later went back, at least 10,000 remain in the Spanish enclave in North Africa, straining local resources and fuelling tensions.

Police moved migrants from Trampolin beach, where around 3,000 people were living in tents and makeshift homes for two months, to temporary accommodation where they will be processed or can go back to Morocco, a Spanish interior ministry spokesman told Reuters on Sunday.

Tensions have persisted over the presence of migrants sleeping rough in the tiny enclave, which is home to 80,000 people. Locals held a demonstration on Saturday calling for the migrants to leave.

King Felipe and Queen Letizia are due to visit Ceuta on October 13 to 14 for the first time in his 12-year reign. The visit comes amid longstanding friction with Morocco, which claims sovereignty over both Ceuta and Spain's other North African enclave, Melilla. REUTERS