Most of the deaths occurred at sea or in the chaos that formed near the Tarajal breakwater. According to the Spanish government, some people drowned and others were crushed while trying to get past the barrier. Testimonies gathered at the scene describe people clinging to rocks and other bodies, until entire groups lost their grip and disappeared beneath the water.

The low tide exposed rocks that allowed passage on foot, but the crowd pushed people who couldn't swim into the sea. Search agents believe some of the victims were thrown into the water during the stampede. Others had already been in the sea for days, after nighttime crossings on makeshift buoys or long hours swimming from Fnideq.

Among the recovered bodies were many teenagers. A funeral source quoted by El País estimated ages between 13 and 35 years and mentioned children appearing to be 12 to 14 years old. Almost all were male, and only one woman had been registered as of Saturday. Their appearance suggested a Moroccan majority, in addition to sub-Saharan victims, but their origin will only be certain after forensic identification.

Civil Guard divers divided the area into grids to locate more bodies, while Moroccan teams searched the other side. Wind and tide could carry victims between the two bodies of water, preventing a definitive count. Ceuta installed refrigerated chambers in the former Military Hospital, increasing the storage capacity from about 15 to up to 200 corpses.

The count of 67 is therefore a confirmed minimum and not a final measure of the tragedy. On Saturday morning, a dozen bodies were recovered and other points were marked on the seabed. Some of the dead may have been recovered in Morocco, while others remain submerged. The border remains, at the same time, a search site, a criminal investigation site, and a nameless cemetery.

Removing the bodies was only the first step. The Guardia Civil's Criminal Laboratory collected fingerprints, photographed clothing, and stored DNA samples. The Legal Medicine and Forensic Science services are now trying to cross-reference this information with missing person reports. When an identity is confirmed, the judge can authorize the release of the body to the family and its repatriation.

Without a match, the body may end up buried with only a number. Support organizations, funeral homes, and the local newspaper El Faro de Ceuta received calls from relatives who lost contact with children or siblings. Families sent photographs and descriptions of clothing; others searched for survivors from the same route.

The absence of a complete public list prolongs the uncertainty for those waiting in Morocco. The available clues are weak. The funeral home that helped receive the bodies indicated approximate age ranges and apparent origin, but no confirmed identities.

Many young people entered without documents or without informing their families, as recounted by Adam Taher, a 16-year-old barber who only called his parents after arriving in Ceuta. For those who disappeared at sea, that contact never happened. The difference between missing, confirmed dead, and rumor requires caution. On social media, numbers and videos circulated without context about who opened the border.

The verified fact is that messages announcing free passage and misinterpretations of a Spanish Supreme Court decision helped to mobilize people. It has also not been demonstrated that the Spanish regularization of undocumented immigrants caused the mass influx. The program required residency prior to January 1, 2026, and that deadline had already passed.

The coordination of the networks, Moroccan passivity, and the number of missing persons remain unclear. As long as answers are lacking, each unnamed body will continue to be incomplete news for a family.

Most of those who entered did not reach continental Europe. Ceuta has special controls, and travel to the peninsula requires inspection. By Friday night, more than 48 people had already returned to Morocco. The return was described as voluntary by Spanish authorities, but many migrants said they were pressured by soldiers, hunger, and the closure of local services.

Ouail Lamzeiz told the Associated Press that he spent eight days in Ceuta and was close to getting a bed at the center, but hadn't eaten in days. Others slept in the bush, fought over food, or walked wounded. Othmane El Merzoug asked for a phone to contact his family and ask for money to return to his city, located about 305 kilometers from the border.

Nabil, a 30-year-old driver, and his wife Wisal, 23, crossed the river with their three-year-old daughter, who suffers from asthma, strapped into a flotation device. They returned because they found no food or milk, despite having money, and said they faced threats. Another woman, who intended to reach her husband in Madrid, stated that soldiers ordered her to return after a night on the street.

The city closed its shops, canceled the summer fair, and saw its shelter collapse. The temporary center, with 520 beds, housed nearly 900 people and opened its infirmary for urgent cases. Outside the gates, there were injured people, children, a pregnant woman, and homeless people. The scarcity transformed the stay into a wait with no route to follow and no conditions to remain.

Not everyone agreed to return. Mohamed Hatri, a 23-year-old Moroccan, said he would stay even if he went hungry. Adam Taher, 16, heard from his parents that he should go back and resumed his journey to work as a barber. Between determination and exhaustion, the choice was narrow: remain in a hostile city or return to the country they left without reaching their imagined destination.

Responsibility cannot be contained in a single explanation. The Spanish government admitted that it did not anticipate the influx of thousands of people and was slow to mobilize the military. For hours, the Guardia Civil and local services were overwhelmed. The president of Ceuta declared a national emergency, while the Ministry of the Interior presented the situation as seasonal pressure similar to that of previous summers.

Rabat, officially praised by Madrid, did not prevent the gathering or the passage of people. An Associated Press photographer saw Moroccan gendarmes with their arms crossed, seemingly unconcerned about the passage of people. Morocco declared that the crisis occurred against its will, but did not explain the initial passivity observed on the ground.

Madrid attributed the mobilization to social media networks that distorted a Supreme Court decision. The ruling prevents the summary expulsion of those arriving by sea without individual due process, but does not grant passage to the peninsula or residency. It was confirmed that messages about the open border circulated on social media. It is unknown whether the dissemination was coordinated or if there were other sources.

The immediate response was another barrier. Spain began installing a 500-meter floating structure, with pneumatic segments, buoys, and a net extending up to one meter underwater. A channel will allow patrols by the Guardia Civil. The measure aims to stop crossings, but it was set up alongside searches for bodies and does not address the flaws that made the crossing deadly.

The European Union summoned interior ministers after 22 countries demanded coordination on the issue. The discussion focused on border protection and the Schengen Area, despite Ceuta having special rules and not being part of it. Amidst political letters and buoys, the central question remains: who is responsible for the deaths, the disappearances, and the lack of assistance at the critical moment?

After the return of more than 48 people and the installation of the new maritime barrier, Ceuta regained some order. However, this semblance of normality ends in the cold storage rooms of the former Military Hospital and with calls from families searching for missing persons.

The death toll of 67 remains provisional, as the search continues and bodies may have been carried by currents into Moroccan waters. The investigation will have to determine who failed in prevention, crowd control, rescue efforts, and public information.

Spain reinforced its border and called for European solidarity; Morocco resumed surveillance and received those returning. None of these responses replaces the identification of the dead nor clarifies why young people, children, and families were left between the sea, hunger, and a passage that would never give them automatic access to continental Europe.