Baghdad: The number of bodies recovered from the waters off Ceuta, a Spanish enclave under Spanish administration, has risen to 88, according to Spanish media.
According to National Iraqi News Agency, the newspaper El Pas reported on Sunday that Ceuta authorities have prepared the city's morgue to receive approximately 200 bodies, as search and recovery operations continue following the latest wave of irregular migration. The newspaper explained that "the 88 bodies currently in the morgue exceed the official count of 72 announced by the Spanish government delegate in Ceuta, Miguel ngel P©rez Triano."
The source noted that "not all the bodies in the morgue are necessarily from this week's mass crossings, and some show signs of decomposition indicating they had been in the water for a longer period."
Earlier on Sunday, the Spanish government delegate in Ceuta announced that the death toll related to the latest wave of crossings had risen to 72, according to the Spanish news agency EFE. The agency reported "an increase in reports and inquiries submitted by Moroccan families searching for their missing relatives since the mass crossing that occurred in the region on July 30th."
According to media reports, dozens of families flocked to the border fence searching for their missing children, who are presumed to have perished in the mass crossings.