El lado de Marruecos en Beni Enzar está listo para abrir la frontera con Melilla
The Moroccan digital Bladi points out that the Beni Enzar border crossing will open on Maundy Thursday, 14 April. The information from Bladi quotes the Spanish daily La Razón, which in turn cites sources from the local digital newspaper in the city of Nador, 'Nador City'.
The Spanish and Moroccan governments have not yet announced a concrete date for the opening of the border crossings in Ceuta and Melilla. The communiqués and statements by the authorities so far have spoken of a "gradual and progressive" opening of the border crossings.
Sources from the Ministry of the Interior consulted by the local daily El Faro de Melilla have completely denied the news published by the Moroccan newspapers. According to the information provided by Tania Costa and Alicia Martínez in this newspaper, the Moroccan media reports are a "trial balloon" to gauge Spanish public opinion.
Atalayar, through local sources who observe the Beni Enzar crossing daily, has been able to find out that from the Moroccan side all the obstacles have been cleared and the post has been "cleaned up". Atalayar sources have been able to see how the worn Moroccan flags have been replaced by new ones. The cement blocks that were blocking the road have been removed, and there is already movement in the post's sentry boxes.
According to the same local sources, from the Spanish side of the border post, not much has changed. "The gates are still closed, and there is minimal staffing. We have not seen the same movement as on the Moroccan side", this source told Atalayar. The national police in Melilla, responsible for the border post, are not yet in the correct and effective capacity to provide adequate service to the border crossing point.
In an interview with El Faro de Melilla, the regional spokesman of the Federal Police Union, Luis Jiménez, gave his opinion on the possible imminent opening of the Melilla crossing point. According to the regional spokesman for the police union, "The crossing point does not open from one day to the next", and indicates in his interview that the border forces have not received "any reinforcements". It therefore seems unlikely that the opening of the crossing is imminent.
However, as sources consulted by Atalayar point out, the Moroccan side is finalising the details to open the border and begin operations. As far as Atalayar has been able to ascertain, almost all the Moroccan officials at the border have returned to work.
For its part, the Government Delegation in Melilla has also calmed tempers and recalled that a government statement will announce the opening of the border crossing well in advance. Gloria Rojas, first vice-president of the autonomous city, in turn recalled that the Official State Gazette, by order of the Ministry of the Interior, has extended the closure of the Melilla border until 30 April. "We will have to follow this official announcement until there is another official announcement. Whether it is maintained or not, that will be up to the Spanish Government or the Government Delegation", added Rojas in a statement to the media, as reported by El Faro de Melilla.
????? @sabrinamohh: “La nueva etapa en las relaciones entre España y Marruecos nos van a permitir afrontar con seguridad los retos que vienen”
— Delegación del Gobierno en Melilla (@DelegGobMl) April 8, 2022
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Sea crossings
Maritime connections by ferry were opened on 12 April between Tangiers and the ports of the Bay of Algeciras. Passengers can once again travel between Spain and Morocco by sea. But for the ports of Nador and Al Hoceima, cities bordering Melilla, connections with the mainland ports of Motril and Almeria have not yet resumed. The news from the Spanish port authorities and shipping companies will possibly be a preamble to the opening of the Beni Enzar border post.
A new diplomatic stage with customs
The borders of Ceuta and Melilla were closed in March 2020 in order to restrict movements to curb COVID. Since then, for two years now, they have been closed. They did not reopen with the improvement of the health situation due to the diplomatic clash between Spain and Morocco over the Spanish government's decision to take in Polisario Front leader Brahim Ghali on a semi-clandestine basis in collaboration with the Algerian authorities.
After Pedro Sánchez's letter sent to Morocco's King Mohamed VI, supporting the Moroccan autonomy plan for the Sahara, and the subsequent visit of the Prime Minister to Rabat, relations between the two countries have returned to normal, marked by a new stage of cordiality. One of the novelties stipulated in the 16-point road map presented by the governments is the setting up of two customs offices in Ceuta and Melilla. In the case of Melilla, customs already operated until 2018, but for Ceuta it is something new. The establishment of a customs office can be interpreted as a cessation of Moroccan claims over the autonomous cities, and a respect for Spanish territorial integrity, as a gesture of good faith in this new stage.
