Hundreds of migrants staged a protest on El Trampolín beach in the Spanish enclave of Ceuta on Sunday, waving Spanish flags and holding banners reading "We don't want to go back to Morocco" and "We are also human" — the latest flashpoint in a border crisis that has dragged on for more than two weeks.

The demonstration comes after more than 72,000 people rushed Ceuta's border fence from Morocco earlier this month, according to NBC News — an extraordinary surge against a local population of roughly 80,000. Spanish authorities say more than 69,500 of those who crossed have since returned to Morocco, but between 3,000 and 8,000 migrants remain stranded in the enclave, many sleeping on beaches after being blocked from reaching the downtown area.

The original crossing turned deadly: at least 72 people died on the Spanish side and 11 on the Moroccan side, mostly drownings, as crowds attempted to swim or scale the border defenses.

"We're sleeping next to the sea"

Migrants who spoke to reporters described dire conditions on the beach. "We're sleeping next to the sea, with cold and bad smells. We're suffering a lot," Ayoub Elarroud, who traveled from Tetouan, Morocco, told the Associated Press. Mohammed Ouanzar, a 39-year-old automation specialist from Fez, described the moment he made it onto Spanish soil differently: "Once I reached Spanish soil, I felt like I was born again."

Ceuta's medical board has reported outbreaks of infectious diarrhea and scabies among the stranded population, along with exhaustion among healthcare workers stretched thin by the influx, board chief Dr. Enrique Roviralta said. Spain's health minister, Mónica García, pushed back on characterizations that local health services had "collapsed," while acknowledging the system is under real strain.

WE DON'T WANT TO GO BACK TO MOROCCO

Spain's government has held firm on its position. Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska said irregular migrants "would not be allowed to stay in the enclave, travel to mainland Spain or obtain legal status," with exceptions reserved for rare cases of extreme vulnerability.

Spanish intelligence has reportedly concluded that Morocco "allowed but did not orchestrate" the initial border rush, a characterization Rabat disputes; Moroccan officials have instead blamed social-media misinformation and trafficking networks for fueling the surge.

With no clear timeline for resolving the standoff, aid workers and local officials say the makeshift beach encampments could persist for weeks, as Madrid and Rabat continue negotiating over deportation logistics and Spain weighs how — or whether — to process asylum claims from those still waiting on the sand.