The Spanish government denies any responsibility over the deaths of some 23 people who attempted to cross from Morocco into its north African Melilla enclave last summer.
Spanish interior minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska told MEPs on Wednesday (22 March) that the over 1,700 who attempted to enter Melilla in June of last year did so through force and violence.
"They were using a sticks and stones to attack the Moroccan and Spanish forces," he said.
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Nikolaj joined EUobserver in 2012 and covers home affairs. He is originally from Denmark, but spent much of his life in France and in Belgium. He was awarded the King Baudouin Foundation grant for investigative journalism in 2010.
Nikolaj joined EUobserver in 2012 and covers home affairs. He is originally from Denmark, but spent much of his life in France and in Belgium. He was awarded the King Baudouin Foundation grant for investigative journalism in 2010.