The Strait Crossing Operation (OPE), scheduled to run until September 15, has seen a slight increase in passenger and vehicle traffic during its second week compared to the same period last year. Despite long queues observed at the Ceuta border with Morocco, embarkations have proceeded without significant incidents.
According to data from Civil Protection and Emergencies, 154,095 passengers and 41,466 vehicles have been processed to date, with a total of 942 ship rotations. These journeys have departed from ports including Algeciras, Alicante, Almería, Málaga, Motril, Tarifa, and Valencia, connecting to various locations in North Africa.
Current figures show an increase compared to the previous year, when 151,387 people and 41,075 vehicles embarked over 957 rotations. This year, the Algeciras-Tangier route leads in embarkations with 46%, followed by Algeciras-Ceuta (21.2%) and Almería-Nador (9.3%), surpassing the traditionally popular Tarifa-Tangier Ville route (8.3%).
During this second week, 695 social assistance cases and 108 medical assistance cases were provided at the ports of Alicante, Almería, Málaga, Tarifa, Valencia, Algeciras, and Motril.
The OPE facilitates the travel of thousands of North African citizens who work in Europe and spend their holidays in the Maghreb between June 15 and September 15.
