Ceuta welcomes King and Queen of Spain for historic visit following border crisis

In the days leading up to the event, the local authorities carried out a strict operation to clear the makeshift camps, relocating the migrants to the industrial areas of Tarajal or speeding up transfers. Ceuta, however, has not returned to normal yet.

Residents watched with relief as their beaches recovered, but they ironically commented on the sudden efficiency of the authorities who had ignored their complaints for more than two months. "Where there's a will, there's a way," a group of local women said.

The prevailing view among the people of Ceuta is that the clearance is nothing more than a "facelift", which has served to drive the migrants out of the settlements and, now, into the hills and the outlying districts.

The monarchs are setting foot in Ceuta for the first time in their 12-year reign. A long-awaited visit, steeped in profound symbolism of national reaffirmation, yet one that has unfolded in an atmosphere of undeniable political complexity.

The absence of Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez from the delegation highlighted the tensions between the Moncloa and the Zarzuela palaces in reaching a consensus on the date of a visit that deeply unsettles neighbouring Morocco.

Meanwhile, Morocco opted for an official silence laced with suspicion, coming to terms with the historic decision for the king and queen to spend the night in Ceuta, something that had not happened since the reign of Alfonso XIII.

At midday on Tuesday, president of the Ceuta regional government Juan Jesús Vivas will welcome the royal couple. The aim of his agenda is to strike a delicate balance between institutional firmness and social sensitivity. There, he will present them with the keys to the city, before heading to the Vicente Aleixandre state school in the early afternoon to show them first-hand the difficulties and vandalism the educational community has been facing following the border incidents.

Later, the royal couple will visit the Sidi Embarek Muslim cemetery to preside over an ecumenical service in memory of those who lost their lives at sea during the crossing in July. With the participation of the city's four religious denominations, King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia are moving away from a purely security-focused narrative to embrace the tragic and human dimension of the border.

The historic visit will draw to a close at dusk at the city's Parador. Before a large gathering, the king will deliver a much-anticipated speech focusing on solidarity and unconditional support for a population that has endured weeks of gruelling exceptional circumstances.

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