Nearly four million Syrians have fled the country since war erupted in 2011, using different routes in search of refuge, mainly in neighbouring countries. Some have tried to head to Europe, perhaps to join relatives or friends, but access is difficult.
Ceuta and Melilla are two Spanish enclaves on north Africa’s Mediterranean coast, surrounded by wire fences that separate them from Morocco. The autonomous Spanish cities have a special status in terms of the Schengen area of free movement, which means that accessing their territory does not automatically grant the right to access Europe.
When Syrians arrive in these cities and apply for asylum they have to wait months until their applications are processed, and during that time they are not allowed to travel to the Spanish mainland. Those who have means can pay for an apartment or hostel while they await their documents, while the rest live in an overcrowded transit centre, the CETI, sometimes for more than eight months. To avoid the uncertainties of waiting, some decide not to apply for asylum, but that doesn’t guarantee they will make it to Europe earlier.
With almost half Syria's population either uprooted from their homes inside the country or refugees abroad, there will be a need for resettlement for years to come. But European nations have agreed to take in only relatively small numbers: Since 2013, Germany has pledged to take in 30,000 Syrians, Sweden 1,200 and Norway 1,000. Spain agreed to resettle 30 people from Syria in 2013, and another 100 in 2014. For 2015, the figures are expected to be the same.
The pictures show the lives of some of these Syrians while they wait to be moved out of Melilla, like Raed, who was a student of mathematical statistics at the University of Aleppo. He was unable to continue his studies because of the war. He flew to Turkey, then to Algeria and finally arrived in Melilla after paying to be smuggled through Morocco on foot.
