Spain checks 200 Italy arrivals as Schengen row widens
What's next: Madrid plans to keep the controls until Sept. 7, while Rome has signaled its own checks could end sooner if risks ease.
Spain inspected 199 travelers on 12 flights from Italy at six major airports on the first day of new border controls, escalating a dispute with Rome over migration after the mass arrival into Ceuta. Madrid imposed checks on air and sea arrivals from Italy after Rome reinstated controls on travelers from Spain on Aug. 1, arguing that migrants who reached the Spanish enclave from Morocco could move onward. Spain rejects that claim, saying Ceuta arrivals cannot enter the wider Schengen area without additional screening. Italy has said its measures will stay at least until Aug. 15, while Spain's controls are set to run through Sept. 7. More than 70,000 migrants crossed into Ceuta on July 30 and 31, though most were quickly returned to Morocco.