Moroccan security forces arrested 294 people near the border with Spain’s enclave of Ceuta on Saturday in what Moroccan media described as a routine operation to prevent illegal border crossings.
Those detained included 46 Moroccans and 248 migrants from sub-Saharan African countries, according to Moroccan media.
Migrants often gather in the hills around the Spanish enclaves of Ceuta and, further east, Melilla, particularly in summer, using the vegetation for cover while seeking an opportunity to enter Europe.
At the end of July, tens of thousands of Moroccans crossed into Ceuta, mainly via the beach and by sea.
Moroccan border guards did not stop them at the time, and Spanish media reported that such a mass crossing would not have been possible without the approval of the Moroccan state.
A new large-scale attempt to reach Ceuta had been announced on social media for 15 August.
Morocco has spent the past week and the weekend trying to prevent that from happening.
