Residents of Ceuta are sounding the alarm over security, crime and the future of their city after an invasion of illegal crossings from neighbouring Morocco overwhelmed the small Spanish enclave.

Rebel News travelled through Ceuta speaking directly with residents and migrants after more than 60,000 people were reported to have entered the Spanish exclave on the North African coast by land and sea.

One migrant described just how simple the journey was. “It’s been easy. It’s been easy,” he said when asked how he crossed into Ceuta, before explaining, “just in beach we swim.”

Another migrant told Rebel News that he had seen information about the crossing on social media, including Facebook and Instagram.

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“In my neighbourhood, one of these illegal migrants entered into a house, and then the local owner of the house and went out with a gang with a gun to defend its own home from the illegal migrants,” he said.

“The police had to come because the situation was so difficult,” he said, adding, “there was so much insecurity.”

The same resident said women in particular were afraid to go outside. “I’m very scared because of the women that can’t go out. They are scary. These people are very scary. The women especially are very scared of this illegal people,” the resident said.

The interview also raised broader concerns about Europe’s security.

“This is a threat. An absolute threat to European security, to Spanish security,” one interviewee warned, describing the Strait of Gibraltar as “the main door of access to Europe from Africa.”

For residents of Ceuta, the debate is no longer simply about immigration. They say it is about whether authorities can protect their homes, their streets and one of Europe’s most strategically important borders.