MADRID (AP) — Officials say around 500 migrants of sub-Saharan origin tried to storm Spain’s barbed-wire border fence separating its North African enclave of Melilla from Morocco but all failed in their bid to enter Europe.

A government statement says hundreds succeeded in breaching an outer fence, but a recently-installed mesh barrier stopped their advance.

Many migrants then opted to run parallel to the fence, forcing the closure of the border crossing between Melilla and Morocco for a short time.

Officials said all migrants returned to Morocco Sunday and no one was injured. A helicopter was used to oversee the attempted border breach.

Spain and Morocco stepped up border vigilance in February after 15 migrants drowned trying to reach Ceuta, another Spanish enclave located on Africa’s northern coast.

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