[Anchor]
Nearly 50,000 migrants have flooded a Spanish territory in northern Africa all at once, causing major chaos. During the process, 19 people died, and even military troops were deployed.
Reporter Kim Minpyo has the story.
[Reporter]
People stream endlessly along the beach.
They are migrants who crossed over from Morocco.
Some swam across, while others arrived by boat.
[Migrant from Morocco: There are no good teachers, and life in Morocco is hard. That is why I swam all the way here.]
With migrants pouring in like a tidal wave, the Spanish border fell into an uncontrollable state.
Migrants climbing over the roof of a border building pay no mind to the occasional sound of gunshots.
Some children perilously scale the barbed-wire fences.
As the crowds rush forward, police throw up their arms to block them before giving up.
The border iron gates were also forced open in an instant.
[Migrant: Long live Spain!]
Amid the chaos, 19 bodies presumed to be migrants were discovered, prompting the deployment of military troops.
The Spanish government stated that 49,000 migrants forced their way in within a single day.
The spot where the border was breached is Ceuta, an autonomous Spanish city located on the African continent.
Bordering Morocco, it is used by migrants as a gateway to enter Europe.
The sudden mass influx of migrants appears to have been influenced by a recent Spanish court ruling.
Earlier this month, the Spanish Supreme Court issued a ruling ordering that migrants entering by sea not be immediately repatriated.
Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez's Socialist government is also pursuing migrant-friendly policies, including launching a program to grant legal residency status to 500,000 undocumented migrants.
However, in response to the latest chaos, the Spanish government announced it has agreed with Morocco to send the migrants back as quickly as possible.
In Europe, complaints are mounting that Spain is driving up the number of illegal migrants.
In particular, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni stated that the "shocking scenes in Ceuta demonstrate the security threat posed by illegal immigration," even suggesting the need to suspend Spain's participation in Europe's open-border Schengen Agreement, thereby escalating diplomatic tensions.
[Video Editing: Jung Yong-hwa]
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