Ceuta and Melilla
Two Spanish cities on the coast of Morocco, and the European Union’s only land borders with Africa. Spain has held Melilla since 1497 and Ceuta since 1580; Morocco claims both. Fenced with razor wire, they are among the most tense crossing points into Europe.
Written from cited sourcesLast checked 26 September 2026Suggest a correction
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Two cities on the African coast
Ceuta sits at the Mediterranean entrance to the Strait of Gibraltar, on a narrow isthmus joining Mount Hacho to the mainland; Mount Hacho may be the southern Pillar of Heracles of the ancient world. There is a ferry across the strait to Algeciras.[1] Melilla lies farther east, on the eastern side of Cabo Tres Forcas, and exports iron ore brought by rail from the Rif.[2]
With a few tiny islets off the coast, they make up Spanish North Africa. Since 1995 both have been autonomous cities, with assemblies like those of Spain’s other regions.[1][2] About a third of Ceuta’s people are Muslim; in Melilla two-thirds are Roman Catholic and most of the rest Muslim.[1][2]
Five centuries of Spanish rule
Ceuta was held in turn by Carthaginians, Greeks and Romans and, as a trading hub for ivory, gold and slaves, was fought over until Portugal took it in 1415. It passed to Spain in 1580 and was confirmed as Spanish by the Treaty of Lisbon of 1688.[1] Melilla, the Roman Rusaddir, fell to Spain in 1497 and stayed Spanish through a long history of sieges.[2]
Both played a part in modern Spanish history. Moroccan tribes led by Abd el-Krim almost captured Melilla in 1921 during the Rif War, and in July 1936 Melilla was the first Spanish town to rise against the Popular Front government, while Franco sent an expedition to Spain from Ceuta.[2][1] When Morocco became independent in 1956, Spain kept both.[2]
Settled, or a colonial legacy?
Spain says the question is closed: the cities are not colonies but fully integrated parts of the Spanish state, and they are not on the UN list of non-self-governing territories, unlike Western Sahara. No international court or UN body has ruled on them.[3]
Morocco has regarded them as its own since independence, and argues that European-held land on the African mainland is a legacy of European expansion. In recent years it has generally put practical cooperation with Spain ahead of confrontation over them.[3]
Europe’s land border with Africa
Because entering either city means entering the EU, both are ringed by double fences, raised in Ceuta in 2006, and thousands try to cross every year.[1][3] In 2021 thousands entered Ceuta after Spain let the Polisario Front’s leader, Brahim Ghali, receive medical treatment in Spain; Spain accused Morocco of easing its border controls.[3]
On 24 June 2022, at the Melilla fence, at least 37 sub-Saharan Africans died in a crackdown by Moroccan and Spanish security forces, Amnesty International says, and at least 70 remained missing two years later.[4] On 31 July 2026 thousands more entered Ceuta; officials linked the timing partly to a Spanish Supreme Court ruling that immediate “hot returns” could not be used on people intercepted at sea. Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez sent more troops.[3][1]
Timeline
1415
Portugal takes Ceuta
Portugal captures the port.[1]
1497
Spain takes Melilla
The Berber town falls to Spain.[2]
1580
Ceuta to Spain
The port passes to Spain.[1]
1921
Rif War
Abd el-Krim’s forces almost capture Melilla.[2]
1956
Moroccan independence
1995
Autonomous cities
Spain approves statutes of autonomy for both.[1]
202224 June 2022
Deaths at Melilla
At least 37 people die at the border fence, Amnesty says.[4]
202631 July 2026
Mass crossing
Thousands enter Ceuta from Morocco.[3]
More map oddities
Sources
- [1]Ceuta · Encyclopaedia Britannica
- [2]Melilla · Encyclopaedia Britannica
- [3]Ceuta and Melilla: Why Europe’s African border remains a flashpoint · Al Jazeera · 5 August 2026
- [4]Morocco/Spain: Reveal fate of migrants who remain missing two years after deadly Melilla border incident · Amnesty International · 24 June 2024
- [5]Admin 0 – Countries, 1:10m · Natural Earth (via the world-atlas package)
The outlines of Ceuta and Melilla on the map.
Map geometry from Natural Earth via world-atlas. See credits.