Scores of migrants have been filmed holding a bizarre wrestling competition on a popular Spanish beach – just weeks after a mass rush at the border.
Baffling footage shows dozens of adult men cheering as they form a tightly packed circle on Playa del Trampolín in Ceuta, Spain.
Two shirtless men can be seen facing off in the middle as a third man appears to act as a referee and signals for the bout to begin.
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One competitor then floors his opponent and pins him to the ground, prompting jubilant spectators to rush into the centre.
The crowd jumps up and down before hoisting the victorious wrestler into the air, only to accidentally drop him back onto the sand.
The surreal footage was recorded by photographer and teacher Javier Bancalero and shared online on Sunday (16 August), as reported by Need To Know.
It comes days after separate footage emerged showing the same beach transformed into a sprawling open-air camp.
Video filmed from a moving car showed Playa del Trampolín packed with makeshift huts and tents.
Much of the 0.57-mile stretch appeared to be covered with shelters, while scores of mostly adult men could be seen milling around and litter was scattered across the shore.
The images were recorded by JUPOL spokesperson Laura García, a representative of the Spanish National Police trade union, on Wednesday (12 August).
Almost two weeks earlier, on 30 July, tens of thousands of people in northern Morocco headed towards Ceuta and attempted to cross its land and maritime borders.
Spanish authorities estimate between 50,000 and 72,000 people entered, with many reportedly swimming around the Tarajal border area.
Ceuta has an official resident population of just 84,222.
The surge appears to have been fuelled largely by false information spreading on social media, including claims the border was open or that Spain could no longer immediately return people who crossed by sea.
Messages reportedly circulated on TikTok, Instagram and WhatsApp, prompting large numbers of mostly young Moroccans to travel towards the border.
The rush proved deadly, with dozens of people reportedly dying, including from drowning and in crushes as huge crowds attempted to negotiate the breakwater and reach Ceuta.
Spanish Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska said on 1 August that “the situation has been almost entirely reversed”.
Alongside social media misinformation, economic hardship and high youth unemployment across parts of Africa have been cited as key drivers of irregular migration to Ceuta.
The Spanish territory sits on the north African coast and forms one of the EU’s only land borders with Africa, making it a major crossing point for people hoping to reach Europe.
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