On Thursday, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni called for Spain to be suspended from the Schengen area, describing the images from Ceuta showing thousands of arriving migrants as “shocking”.

Italy has suspended its Schengen agreement with Spain, following the influx of migrants into the latter’s Ceuta enclave in northern Morocco, Italy’s Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said Friday.

“The temporary suspension of Schengen with Spain is a necessary decision to protect the security of our citizens and defend Europe’s borders,” Tajani wrote on X.

Italy’s interior ministry confirmed to AFP that Italy had closed to Spain its maritime and air entry points but cautioned it would not impact travel for Spanish and European citizens to Italy.

A spokesman also said that following discussions with France, the two countries would reinforce land border controls that are already in place.

On Thursday, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni called for Spain to be suspended from the Schengen area, describing the images from Ceuta showing thousands of arriving migrants as “shocking”.

Tajani on Friday said the the temporary measure to suspend Schengen — a border-free travel area in which checks are abolished for travellers – was “provided for by the treaties and, today, rendered unavoidable.”

He called the migrant crisis in Ceuta a “shared responsibility” within the bloc and said EU countries must “work together to prevent uncontrolled flows of migrants from entering EU territory…”

The interior ministry said any checks at air and sea borders with Spain would be “targeted” and concern only non-EU citizens arriving from Spain.

The measure is to remain in force for one month beginning on Saturday, the interior ministry said.