What we know
What we know: Spain's king and queen to visit Ceuta as territory grapples with protracted migration crisis
Compiled Oct 13
What we know
- King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia will visit Ceuta on Tuesday and Melilla on Wednesday
- This is the first visit by a Spanish monarch to the two cities since Juan Carlos I toured them in 2007
- About 80,000 migrants crossed Ceuta's border in July, with more than 140 people dying
- Thousands of migrants still remain in Ceuta, a city of 84,000 residents
- The Spanish government is investigating abuse allegations following an Amnesty International report on mistreatment and torture by Spanish soldiers
- The royals will visit a cemetery where migrants who died on July 30-31 were buried, and also visit a school and meet local officials
What we don’t know yet
- It's unknown how many migrants remain in Ceuta, though the mayor has estimated as many as 15,000
- The abuse allegations against Spanish soldiers are still under investigation by the Spanish government
- It's unclear whether Morocco will react diplomatically to Felipe's visit
- Whether Morocco could have done more to impede the mass crossing remains disputed among Spaniards
Open questions
- How many migrants are actually still in Ceuta?
- What will the investigation into the abuse allegations find?
- Will Morocco respond diplomatically to the king's visit?
- How will the migration crisis affect the upcoming elections?
Drawn from the Associated Press report. “What we don’t know” lists only what the reporting itself flags as unresolved.