Illegal migrants living on the cliffs of Ceuta following the invasion of the Spanish city “destroyed” a cat colony by using it as an open air toilet soiled with excrement and urine while ransacking its edible supplies, a local animal caretaker alleged Wednesday.
El Faro de Ceuta reports that, for 16 years, elderly Ceuta resident Sohora Driss has taken care of several cat colonies across Ceuta. Driss denounced to El Faro on Wednesday that she feels “sadness and frustration” after one such colony, located in the southern Recinto Sur neighborhood, has been “destroyed” by illegal migrants that entered the city during the chaotic late July invasion.
The migrants, Driss stressed, have not just repeatedly looted the shelter’s supplies, but constantly relieve themselves in the area — even near the area where the cats usually eat at.
Speaking with El Faro, the elderly woman showed how the structure that used to shelter the cats was destroyed by migrants who repeatedly stepped on it as they passed through. Some of the damaged areas, built by the woman over the past years, were specifically tailored for animals that required recovery time after suffering a lesion or needed rest after veterinary treatments.
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Driss also denounced that containers and supplies used for the care of the animals have disappeared since the migrant invasion. The water left by her for the cats to drink has been repeatedly stolen by the migrants, who have used it to wash themselves instead.
The cats’ food bowls, the woman lamented, are used by the migrants as ashtrays. Cat cages and veterinary first aid supplies kept locked by the caretaker have been “thrown” down the cliff, with much of the emergency material either disappearing or left torn down.
“As for the cats’ blankets, I don’t have a single one left, Driss said. “Now, I’m putting out tiny little pieces so they won’t take them.”
She further denounced that the migrants have also significantly damaged the stair path to the cat colony, leading to its collapse.
The lack of a safe access to the area, the woman stressed, led to her tripping down and suffering injuries that left her in pain for weeks.
Driss detailed that over twenty cats used to form part of the colony at the now-damaged shelter — nine of which have been hit and killed by passing cars while the cats were running away in fear. El Faro pointed out that a small migrant encampment exists close to the cat shelter.
The continued presence of the invading migrants, the animal caretaker said, also represents a danger to her own personal safety. Driss said that before the invasion, she felt safe to visit and care for the cats up to three times per day — sometimes even at night. After the invasion, she explained, her routine has changed, and said “I am afraid, now I can’t come as I used to,” stressing that she now tries to leave before the sun is down.
In addition to the significant damages to the cat shelter and the continued ransacking of the supplies intended for the felines, Driss warned she has had to repeatedly clean garbage left by the migrants, as well as excrement and urine left by the migrants near the shelter.
In the footage of the interview published by El Faro, an unknown man is seen scavenging for supplies right as the interview was taking place — prompting the elderly woman to berate the man in Arabic language. Driss explained to El Faro that the man claimed to have been in search for “cotton.”
“I don’t lie, and I don’t exaggerate. In fact, I hold a lot of things back, and I’m sorry about the smell of sh*t and pee,” a visibly upset Driss told El Faro.
Driss urgently called for Ceuta’s police to act and clear the nearby migrant encampment. She also made calls for the city’s environment and animal protection authorities to clean and recover the area, ensuring the safety of the remaining felines.
“My intention is for them [the migrants] to leave right away, for alternatives to be found for them,” she said.
