Italy, Spain extend border checks 15 days after Ceuta migrant surge
Why it matters: The tit-for-tat move further strains the EU's Schengen travel zone as thousands remain in Ceuta.
Italy extended its suspension of open-border arrangements with Spain for another 15 days on Aug. 31, keeping checks in place that Rome imposed after a mass migrant surge into Spain's North African enclave of Ceuta. Spain responded by prolonging its own air and sea passenger checks on arrivals from Italy for 15 more days. Italy first imposed the curbs on Aug. 1, saying it wanted to prevent migrants who entered Ceuta from traveling onward to Italy. Spanish authorities say about 72,000 people crossed into Ceuta from neighboring Morocco on July 30, with between 5,000 and 8,000 still there. Spain's Fernando Grande-Marlaska said roughly 70,000 had returned to Morocco.