CASABLANCA, Morocco (AP) — Ayoub Akbili needed money for his mother’s surgery. Hamza Haibouri wanted the opportunity to pursue a professional football career. Abdelouahed Iken was pursuing the bright life that a friend from Italy posted on Facebook. So when they heard rumors that Morocco’s border with Spain was open, they decided to join the race to try to reach Europe. The three died trying to cross, becoming victims of the deadliest migration crisis between Morocco and Spain. to reach Ceuta, a Spanish territory on the North African coast. At least 90 people died trying to cross the border, according to official figures; Human rights groups reported a much higher number of victims. Many families have still not been able to recover the bodies. Almost all survivors have returned to Morocco and both countries have stepped up security measures. Moroccan and Spanish authorities blamed the increase on social media rumors and human trafficking networks, while migrants cited unemployment and low wages as important factors. Crowd draw Akbili, 31, lived in Tangier, about an hour from the Moroccan coastal city of Fnideq. Migration had been on his mind for some time, but friends and family said he had never considered crossing illegally. He had a college degree in physics, but couldn’t find a job in his field and worked in an auto parts factory. He earned about $421 a month, slightly above the average salary in the North African country. This undated image, provided by his family, shows Ayoub Akbili, a man who died while trying to cross from the Moroccan border town of Fnideq to the Spanish enclave of Ceuta. (AP Photo) This undated image, provided by his family, shows Ayoub Akbili, a man who died while trying to cross from the Moroccan border town of Fnideq to the Spanish enclave of Ceuta. (AP Photo) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share Read more Driven by ambitions to become a regional hub for the automotive industry, Morocco’s economy is expected to grow 4.5% this year. But policymakers face a persistent challenge: converting that growth into jobs that offer higher wages. Akbili was working the 2:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. shift when she saw posts on Facebook about people crossing into Ceuta. He wanted to try his luck in hopes of finding a job that could help his mother pay for hernia surgery. “His opinion changed completely. He went from someone who was not thinking about illegal migration to wanting to go by all means,” Abdelhakim Saadaoui, a relative and roommate of Akbili, told The Associated Press. Akbili convinced Saadaoui to go with him. On July 31, they paid a driver $129 to take them near the border with Ceuta, the equivalent of two months’ rent. Subscribe to Morning Wire: Our flagship newsletter breaks down the day’s biggest headlines. When they arrived, Saadaoui said, there was total chaos. From afar, the crowds looked like ants, he said, as the streets filled with people heading toward the border. Police fired stun grenades and tear gas in an attempt to disperse them, he said. Saadaoui decided not to continue. Akbili continued. The two remained in contact by phone. Then Akbili stopped answering. A Moroccan Interior Ministry document obtained by the AP says Akbili died at midnight on July 31. His death was classified as “unnatural,” attributed to “severe head trauma.” He was buried in his hometown of Khenifra. His family was told he died after falling from a cliff. The Interior Ministry said one of the 11 deaths recorded on the Moroccan side was caused by a fall from a cliff. But a cousin suspects foul play and wants it investigated further. “His phone and wallet remained intact. How could someone have fallen off a cliff?” Zakaria Akbili told the AP. Football dreams led to a victim. Hamza Haibouri, who played soccer for Morocco’s second division Kenitra Athletic Club, was fueled by dreams of making it big playing in Europe, said his childhood friend Bilal Ratib. Haibouri, 28, was on vacation in Martil, a Moroccan coastal town about 40 kilometers (25 miles) from Ceuta, when he saw people heading there and decided to join them. His death in the frantic attempt to cross was announced by the soccer team’s supporters. People walk on a beach as they try to cross from the northern Moroccan city of Fnideq to the Spanish enclave of Ceuta, Friday, July 31, 2026. (AP Photo) People walk on a beach as they try to cross from the northern Moroccan city of Fnideq to the Spanish enclave of Ceuta, Friday, July 31, 2026. (AP Photo) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share Read more Ratib said Haibouri visited France when he was young and had always wanted to return. “He always had the idea of living abroad and going to France to improve football and have a better life,” Ratib said. “He was a great man, even when we were young and reckless, he always went to the mosque early for the first prayer,” Ratib said. “He was deeply religious.” Haibouri, whose income came exclusively from soccer, earned about $540 a month when he played, but had not played at all this year, Ratib said. Families learn of deaths through FacebookAbdelouahed Iken, 19, was finishing high school in the southern city of Agadir. I regularly admired photos on Facebook posted by a friend who had emigrated to Italy. When he heard rumors that the Ceuta border was open, he asked his mother for money to travel to his hometown. But instead of returning home, Iken traveled more than 850 kilometers (530 miles) north of Ceuta with friends, according to family member Housine Zligui. Zligui said he learned of Iken’s death on Facebook and the family is now working to bring his body home. Iken didn’t know how to swim, so he bought a life jacket to cross. Returning friends told the family they saw him struggling in the water before drowning, Zligui said. For many Moroccans, Europe represents the possibility of work, stability and a better future. Those who manage to leave abroad often return home with designer clothes, cars and euros, becoming symbols of success… and envy. Money sent home by Moroccans living abroad reached $6.6 billion in the first six months of this year, according to government figures, equivalent to more than 3% of the country’s GDP. Families were asked to pay enormous repatriation costs. According to Ratib and Zligui, families were asked to pay about 2,500 euros ($2,900) in repatriation costs to bring the bodies of their loved ones home from Ceuta. The AP could not confirm the cost. But the repatriation of a body from Spain to Morocco generally requires authorization from the Moroccan Consulate and a Spanish mortuary transit document. Moroccan regulations typically require a sealed coffin and a certificate confirming that the death was not caused by a contagious disease. A spokesman for the Ceuta government said Friday that the procedures to repatriate the bodies of those who died at the crossing were complete, but the Moroccan government had not accepted them. The Moroccan government did not respond to an email from the AP with detailed questions about what was delaying the repatriation, who was responsible for covering the costs and whether the Moroccan government would help families pay for the return of their loved ones. Autopsies have been completed on 82 immigrants brought to Spain, said Manuel Aparcero, director of Ceuta’s forensic team. Haibouri’s sister underwent DNA testing so that Ceuta authorities could confirm her brother’s identity. Ceuta authorities gave Haibouri’s sister his identification card and driver’s license, but did not allow her to see his body, Ratib said. “It will take about 20 days or more” for the body to be returned, he said. “You cannot imagine the suffering of the families.” The Trade Union Network for Migration in Morocco asked Morocco and Spain to cover the costs of returning the dead to their families. Returning to Tangier, Saadaoui moved in with his co-workers. He couldn’t bear to live without Akbili. “He told me at the border, ‘I’ll never come back,’” Saadaoui said. “And, in fact, he will never come back.” ___ Associated Press journalist Suman Naishadham in Madrid contributed.
