Around 150 migrants of sub-Saharan origin crossed the border fence that separates the Spanish enclave of Ceuta from Morocco in the early hours of Friday morning, the Spanish Civil Guard confirmed.

The incident happened at approximately 6:15 a.m. local time (0515 GMT) when the migrants managed to force their way through one of the doors in the fence and enter Spanish territory.

Upon entering Ceuta, the migrants separated into small groups and ran through the streets of the town, with many making their way to the neighborhood known as "El Principe", which is made up of a labyrinth of small streets and has a mainly Muslim population.

Spanish Interior Minister Juan Ignacio Zoido, commented to Spanish media in Brussels, where he is attending an EU meeting, that the "majority" of those who had taken part in the assault had been detained by the Spanish police and searches were being carried out for the remainder.

Ceuta and the other Spanish enclave of Melilla are favored destinations for many migrants as they are officially European Union (EU) soil and their being on the African continent means avoiding the perilous sea crossing to southern Europe.

Figures published by the Spanish interior ministry on Sept. 14 show that in 2015 the number of illegal migrants entering the two cites rose to 11,624, 4,139 more than in 2014. Endit

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