Moroccan Probe Finds Melilla Migrants Likely Died of 'Suffocation'

    Image copyright: AP/picture-alliance [via Info Migrants]

    The Facts

    • The state-backed National Human Rights Council of Morocco (CNDH) declared Wed. that at least 23 of 2k migrants, many from Sudan, that attempted to enter the Spanish enclave of Melilla in June likely "suffocated."

    • 200 law enforcement officers and more than 70 civilians were reportedly injured, and, according to the rights group Caminando Fronteras, the migrant death toll could be as high as 37.


    The Spin

    Narrative A

    While the results were undeniably tragic, police were responding to a violent and mass attack on Spanish territory, instigated by human-trafficking mafias. This simply highlights the broader issue of a migration crisis, which poses a severe security threat to Spain and the rest of Europe.

    Narrative B

    Labelling Spain a victim of violent invaders is a convenient way to minimize this atrocity and escape responsibility. Spain, along with other EU nations, has made it a decade-long policy to keep migrants out by any means necessary. The real victims here are the refugees seeking asylum who have been violently turned away.


    Metaculus Prediction


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