Police have started moving hundreds of migrants from beaches in Ceuta to a new tented camp at the port area of the Spanish enclave in North Africa.
Officers struggled to control crowds jostling to secure spaces at the facility after weeks of sleeping on the beaches. Gunshots were heard, with reports that police fired into the air to restore order.
Several hundred migrants have now arrived at the camp, which has a capacity of 1,700 people.
Most of the 72,000 migrants who crossed the border from Morocco in July have since returned. Authorities in Ceuta estimate about 13,000 remain, although the central government in Madrid puts the figure lower.
The operation began at about 07:00 local time (05:00 GMT) on Friday, with over 3,000 migrants being transferred, according to Spanish state-owned news agency Efe.
During the exercise, some migrants broke through the security cordon along the 2km route to the port. Videos showed young men running in the darkness as police battled to maintain control.
More than 170 officers, including drone operators, were deployed for the operation, Efe reported. It said the situation was later brought under control quickly and the transfer continued.
The exercise is part of government efforts to concentrate migrants in facilities where they can be identified and cared for while their status is individually assessed.
The chaotic scenes are likely to fuel opposition criticism of Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez over his handling of the crisis.
Since the influx, residents of the 18.5 sq km territory have raised safety concerns. Some have destroyed shelters and blocked aid deliveries to the migrants.
Ceuta Mayor Juan Jesus Vivas told members of the European Parliament earlier this month that the situation had turned the enclave into a “pressure cooker.”
“The city is completely different than it was before this event, Ceutans have lost their joy and their lifestyles have been completely shaken up,” the conservative mayor said.
The opposition has also accused Sánchez of having prior knowledge of the influx. The prime minister insisted it was unpredictable, but government documents show intelligence services had warned of social media calls for a mass crossing into Ceuta a day before it happened.
Ester Muñoz of the conservative People’s Party said the government was “directly responsible for the invasion of Ceuta and for those who died.”
Sánchez has blamed trafficking gangs and said the crisis was triggered by hoaxes and rumours spread on social media.
He described Ceuta as “a humanitarian crisis and also an administrative challenge within the city itself.”
The incident has also caused diplomatic strains. The prime minister is at odds with Italy, with both countries this week extending temporary border controls on each other. He is also working to preserve bilateral ties with Morocco.
The late July influx followed a ruling by Spain’s Supreme Court that migrants intercepted at sea while trying to reach Ceuta cannot be summarily returned to Morocco.
After the judgment, some social media accounts spread false information and offered to help migrants cross the border for hundreds of pounds.
Thousands subsequently flooded through the border fence and swam around sea barriers. At least 100 people died during the crossing, according to local authorities.
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