Migrants climb the wire fences, which are set to be replaced, at the border in Melilla

Spain is to remove razor wire from border fences in north Africa to prevent serious injuries to migrants who storm the barriers.

After criticism from aid groups Spain’s Socialist government said that it would replace the wire with “smart” sensors to track movement near the barriers in Melilla and Ceuta, Spanish cities that border Morocco, and alert their Moroccan counterparts.

People traffickers organise mass charges by migrants, who suffer deep cuts when they try to smash their way through.

No date has been fixed for removing the barbed wire. Police unions complain that they do not have enough officers to withstand mass charges and officers are often hurt.

The Unit Against Illegal Immigration, a Spanish police squad that shares intelligence about traffickers with African and