Paraglider enters Spanish enclave in North Africa by air, defying authorities

A paraglider has perplexed authorities in Melilla after entering the Spanish enclave by air and seemingly disappearing. A person crossed the border fence between Morocco and the Spanish overseas territory by paragliding over it on Thursday, December 1.

By-standers saw the paraglider enter over a fence while driving on a ring road on the outskirts of Melilla in the evening at around 6:15pm and notified police. Melilla’s representative to the Spanish government released a statement saying, “Police forces were immediately deployed to the area but were unable to locate the migrant”.

A short video was released on social media showing a paraglider with a white parachute crossing the two parallel border fences and apparently landing in a forested area nearby. The limited description means that police were unable to identify the migrant’s nationality.

If successful, the event would be the first time a migrant entered the territory using the unusual method of transport. Melilla has been at the centre of migration controversy in recent years with the Spanish Foreign Ministry recording arrivals of at least 1,155 undocumented migrants between the start of the year and Saturday, October 15.