More than 25,000 migrants have returned to Morocco from Spain's Ceuta enclave after a recent surge of tens of thousands crossing the border, Spain's interior ministry said today.

"Departures from Ceuta to Morocco on the morning of July 31, up to 1:00pm (1100 GMT): 25,000. Departures from Ceuta are taking place at a rate of 150 people per minute," the Interior Ministry wrote in a message sent to AFP.