A Moroccan football player, Faten Ben Amar El Azizi of the Maghreb Athletic club, died while attempting to swim across the sea to reach Spain’s autonomous city of Ceuta.
Spanish authorities report that she was among 67 fatalities in a large-scale migration crisis that has seen approximately 60,000 people attempt to cross from Morocco into Ceuta since July.
The Maghreb Athletic club stated: “She was not looking for fame or adventure,” but rather “a better life and a future that she believed was waiting for her on the other side of the border.”
On July 30, Spain recorded a massive influx of refugees, prompting authorities to suspend operations at Melilla’s only functioning border crossing. Madrid has deployed military and police forces who have used tear gas against migrants attempting to enter Ceuta. As of August 1, at least 61 migrants had died while trying to cross the border.
