Spain has begun the process of removing a group of Algerian migrants from Ceuta following the resolution of their immigration and asylum procedures, marking the first confirmed expulsions involving non-Moroccan migrants since the mass arrival of people into the Spanish enclave in late July.

The Spanish government confirmed on September 16 that 51 Algerian nationals had completed the relevant administrative procedures and were being transferred from Ceuta to the Spanish mainland, where they would be placed in a Foreigners' Internment Centre before their eventual removal from Spain.

The number involved remains unclear

The number of Algerian migrants involved has been reported differently.

Territorial Policy Minister Ángel Víctor Torres publicly referred to 51 Algerian nationals when announcing the operation.

However, subsequent reporting from Ceuta indicated that 63 Algerian residents had left the Temporary Immigrant Stay Centre, or CETI, as part of the operation.

According to local reporting, 43 of the 63 were due to be transferred to the mainland after an initial group of 20 had already left Ceuta. The discrepancy between the government's figure of 51 and the 63 reported by local sources has not been fully explained.

For that reason, the number should not currently be reported simply as 63 people who have been deported.

First group transferred from Ceuta

The first confirmed group left the CETI on September 16.

The migrants were taken under police escort to the courts in Ceuta before being transferred to the mainland. The judicial process was required before they could be placed in a Foreigners' Internment Centre, known as a CIE.

A CIE is used to hold certain foreign nationals while arrangements are made for their removal from Spain. Being transferred to a CIE does not itself mean that the person has already been deported.

Migrants had been in Ceuta before the July arrivals

The Algerian group was not part of the mass movement of migrants into Ceuta on July 30 and 31.

According to the government, the Algerian nationals involved in this operation were already in Ceuta before those events.

Their removal therefore concerns people whose individual administrative procedures had already reached the relevant stage rather than migrants who had just entered the city during the late-July crisis.

Asylum procedures had been resolved

The government said the individuals concerned had reached the point where their return procedures could be carried out under Spanish law.

Local reporting indicates that a significant part of the group had previously requested international protection and that their applications had been rejected.

The precise legal circumstances can differ between individuals, so rejection of an asylum application should not automatically be treated as equivalent to immediate deportation. The relevant administrative and judicial procedures still have to be completed.

Transfer to mainland Spain

The migrants were moved from Ceuta by sea to the Spanish mainland as part of the removal procedure.

Reports indicate that some were taken towards Algeciras, while other reporting identified Alicante as the intended location for the CIE placement.

The transfer to mainland Spain is a procedural step and is separate from the eventual removal to Algeria.

Deportation has not necessarily already taken place

This distinction is particularly important when describing the operation.

The Spanish government has confirmed that the migrants' return procedures have been resolved and that they are being transferred to CIE facilities as a step towards removal.

However, the physical transfer from Spain to Algeria is a subsequent stage.

Reports on September 17 said the remaining members of the group were expected to leave Ceuta for the mainland before being returned to Algeria, but that does not mean all of them had already been deported at that point.

Part of a wider response to the Ceuta migration crisis

The operation comes as Spain continues to process thousands of people who arrived in Ceuta during the large-scale migration crisis that began at the end of July.

The government has been expanding temporary accommodation, increasing police and administrative resources and accelerating the processing of immigration cases.

As of September 15, the government reported 4,160 people accommodated in temporary facilities, 5,482 voluntary returns and 307 expulsions. It also said that almost 100 people had renounced international protection applications.

These figures cover the wider Ceuta operation and should not be confused with the separate Algerian group.

Government says returns will continue

The Spanish government has said that people who do not have a legal basis to remain in Spain will be subject to the applicable return or expulsion procedures.

At the same time, people who qualify for international protection are handled through a different legal process.

The government has also been working to speed up administrative procedures while maintaining the legal avenues available to migrants, including the possibility of challenging decisions.

A significant first step in the current crisis

The movement of the Algerian group represents the first publicly confirmed departure of migrants with completed return procedures since the mass arrivals of July involving people other than Moroccan nationals.

But the operation should not be described as the deportation of 63 Algerians unless and until the authorities confirm both the final number and that the removals to Algeria have actually taken place.

For now, the confirmed information is that the Spanish government announced the removal process involving 51 Algerian nationals, while subsequent local reporting identified 63 people who had left the CETI. The discrepancy remains unresolved.