The death of at least 23 people on June 24 at the Barrio Chino border post, between Nador (Morocco) and Melilla, left many questions unanswered.
Five months later, an investigation by EL PAÍS together with Lighthouse Reports,
Le Monde
,
Der Spiegel
and
Enass
reveals new details about the events.
The investigation shows how the authorities in Spain and Morocco reacted to an avalanche that left people in need of help in both countries.
Moroccan officers continued to fire tear gas into a dead-end compound and responded to the avalanche with brutality.
The Spanish agents did not attend to the victims of the crowding, despite the fact that the Civil Guard helicopter recorded that moment.
One of the 35 witnesses interviewed assures that one person died on the Spanish side.
Moroccan agents appear in a video confirming that death.
Back in Melilla, some witnesses say that they fainted, but that, far from taking care of them, the Spanish agents tied their hands and handed them over to the Moroccans who later beat them.
Despite the dangerous situation they faced when they were returned to Morocco, the Civil Guard carried out 470 hot returns.