Morocco angry over Spanish island occupation

Spain today grabbed back the tiny uninhabited Mediterranean isle no bigger than a soccer pitch that is at the centre of a bitter dispute with Morocco.

Within hours the North African kingdom demanded the immediate withdrawal of Spanish forces from the isle, saying the speck of land was an “integral part” of its territory.

Spanish forces had earlier evicted a unit of Moroccan soldiers from the island, which Spain calls Perejil and Morocco calls Leila. Morocco called that an act of aggression.

“The kingdom of Morocco protests with force against this unjustified aggression, at the moment when Morocco and Spain were trying to resolve this crisis by diplomatic means,” said a statement issued by the official news agency MAP.

“The Moroccan government urges the immediate and unconditional withdrawal of Spanish forces,” the statement read. “The island is an integral part of Moroccan territory.”

Spain took action after consulting the UN Security Council and the country’s allies, said Prime Minister Jose Maria Aznar’s office.

“The Spanish government has found itself obliged to order an eviction of the Moroccan detachment established on Perejil Island,” the statement said.

The operation took place at around 5.15am Irish time and involved naval units, special ground forces and combat aircraft.

By mid-morning, a dozen Spanish soldiers had taken up defensive positions along the island’s periphery, as two soldiers patrolled the island and five warships circled nearby waters.

The six Moroccans were taken to Ceuta, a Spanish North African enclave three miles from the island and then sent home.

The Spanish Ambassador to Morocco, Fernando Arias-Salgado, was recalled last night for talks about the crisis.

The standoff began last Thursday, when a security force of 12 Moroccans landed on the island, set up tents and raised their national flag.

The island has belonged to Spain since 1668, but is claimed by Morocco. There has been no Spanish presence on the island for the last 40 years.

Moroccan Foreign Minister Mohamed Benaissa said on Monday that the people who landed on the island were police, not soldiers.

He said they were sent to the island for a “simple surveillance operation in a sensitive zone” and would remain “for the time being”.