THOUSANDS of migrants have attempted to cross the border from Morocco to the Spanish enclave of Ceuta in the last few days, including hundreds of youth who tried to swim their way around controls, Spanish authorities said on Monday.

Videos broadcast on Spanish media over the weekend showed Spanish police intercepting migrants in the water at night amid a thick fog but also in broad daylight, struggling to separate the new arrivals from crowds of beach-goers.

Cristina Perez, the Spanish government’s representative in Ceuta, told journalists on Monday that since August 22 an average of 700 people had attempted to breach the border daily, with a peak of 1,500 attempts on Sunday.

Ms Perez did not disclose how many had successfully reached Ceuta but she said authorities were sending back to Morocco between 150 and 200 people a day. 

Due to geography, Spain relies largely on Morocco’s goodwill to control those borders. 

In February, residents of the nearby Moroccan town of Belyounech attempted to swim to Ceuta after the Moroccan government began demolishing unauthorised beachside homes to make way for new development.

While the number of migrants to reach Ceuta represents just a tiny fraction of the more than 31,000 irregular arrivals to Spain this year, Ms Perez claimed the 7.14 square mile territory was under “extreme migratory pressure.”