Two Soldiers Evacuated to Madrid Hospital After Separate Assaults During Ceuta Deployment

Spain's Defense Ministry confirmed the evacuation of two soldiers injured during their Ceuta deployment to the Hospital Central de la Defensa Gómez Ulla in Madrid. One, from the Ceuta Regulares group, suffered a knee injury — initially described as a dislocation, later requiring surgery for a fractured fibula — after an incident on Sep 9; the second sustained a shoulder injury in a separate attack around 4am on Sep 12 in the Juan XXIII area. Defense Minister Margarita Robles visited both soldiers in hospital on Sep 17; the ministry said in a statement 'our soldiers [are] always professional, close to and involved with Ceuta.' The incidents add to a string of assaults on security forces deployed since the July 30-31 crossing.