Morocco is considering suspending its bilateral extradition agreement with Spain, Justice Minister Abdellatif Ouahbi has said, as tensions escalate over migration and the status of Spanish enclaves in North Africa.
Ouahbi criticised Madrid for regularising migrants who reach Spanish territory and demanded the immediate repatriation of all Moroccan minors, including more than 1,300 who remain in Ceuta following a mass border breach on July 30. Spain's Youth and Childhood Minister Sira Rego has ruled out collective deportation of children.
The dispute unfolds as both governments work to prevent a new wave of migrants toward Ceuta and Melilla. Ouahbi also asserted that the two enclaves are Moroccan territories, calling their status unresolved. The threat follows a July 8 Spanish Supreme Court ruling that barred pushbacks of migrants intercepted at sea.