Critics allege Morocco’s border absence was deliberate
SEVILLE, Spain — The crisis at Spain’s North African enclave of Ceuta began as a moderate increase in border crossings and turned into an emergency on Thursday, when nearly 60,000 people crossed from Morocco in a matter of days. Spanish authorities reported at least 67 deaths, most of them migrants who drowned trying to swim around a breakwater that separates the two countries.
By Saturday, the Spanish government declared the situation under control. The army had been mobilized in the region, and authorities installed a 500-meter floating barrier off the border with Morocco.
The influx has become a defining political test for Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez, who faces mounting pressure from European leaders, U.S. President Trump, and domestic opposition parties. It comes at a time when Sánchez’s government is also consumed by the response to wildfires devastating the country, including some of the largest on record.
Sánchez sent a letter to European counterparts calling some of them out for “attacking Spain.” But images of tens of thousands of migrants crossing into Spanish territory from Morocco went around the world, drawing comments from anti-immigration foreign leaders.
Trump called the crossing a “catastrophe” and an “invasion,” blaming what he called “weak” and “very liberal” laws in Spain. The U.S. State Department posted on social media blaming the crisis on Sánchez’s migration-friendly policies.
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said the crisis showed the “threat” irregular migration presents to European security. Italy temporarily suspended its open-border Schengen agreement with Spain, reimposing border controls for air and sea for travelers coming from the country.
Meloni also co-initiated a letter signed by the majority of EU countries calling for an emergency meeting to discuss the border crisis in Ceuta and take immediate action to control Europe’s external borders. The letter, signed by leaders of 22 of the EU’s 27 states, has turned Spain’s crisis into a continent-wide argument. Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said “uncontrolled immigration is a threat to Europe and to Denmark,” and said the EU should consider suspending Schengen cooperation with Spain.
In Spain, Sánchez’s political opponents seized on the moment. The VOX party, which has increased its presence in the Spanish parliament on an anti-immigration platform, called for the militarization of the border and the immediate deportation of all migrants who crossed, including minors. The center-right Partido Popular called on the government to declare a national emergency, close the borders, and mobilize the army.
A key question in the crisis concerns the role of Moroccan authorities. Most of the migrants who crossed were Moroccan, and critics allege Moroccan law enforcement were absent — even complicit — from the Moroccan side of the border at the most critical hours on Thursday, when thousands of migrants were freely crossing by foot, some of them women and children, in what appeared to be a coordinated flow of people.
“I think that after almost 48 hours since the beginning of the crisis in Ceuta, we can safely say that this was a manufactured crisis,” said Riccardo Fabiani, Project Director for North Africa for the International Crisis Group. He added: “We have testimonies by some Moroccans who crossed into Ceuta. We have videos circulating online showing trucks full of people unloading them in front of the complicit Moroccan police forces.”
Morocco’s ambassador to Spain said the situation had unfolded against Morocco’s wishes. “We have always prioritized legal, orderly and safe migration for all,” Karima Benyaich told the Associated Press. She did not comment on what prompted the migrants to cross into Ceuta.
One possible factor for the influx is a Spanish Supreme Court ruling issued July 8 that eased deportation rules for migrants entering Ceuta or Melilla. The ruling prevents law enforcement from deporting migrants who swim into the territories, reversing a practice of deporting them on the spot without a legal process.
Some of the migrants who crossed said they read messages circulating on social media and messaging platforms about the ease of crossing the border in Ceuta, and expected to be welcomed and taken to the Spanish mainland.
Ceuta and Melilla have been under Spanish control for centuries, but Morocco does not recognize them as Spanish territory and has repeatedly called for their return. The enclaves have been a long source of tension between Madrid and Rabat. In 2021, that contention escalated sharply after Spain allowed Brahim Ghali, the leader of the Polisario Front, to enter the country for medical treatment. The Polisario Front seeks independence for Western Sahara, a disputed territory claimed by Morocco.
For years, Spain supported a process that included the possibility of an independence referendum for Western Sahara. But in 2022, Sánchez’s government shifted course, endorsing Morocco’s claims over the territory. Some observers interpreted the move as an attempt to repair relations with Rabat following the Ghali controversy. In another twist, Sánchez recently visited Algeria, Morocco’s longtime regional rival and backer of the Polisario Front, only days before the latest events in Ceuta.
Trump’s quick response and comments, along with critical comments made by Israeli politicians, led some Spanish politicians to accuse the United States and Israel of exploiting or even encouraging the crisis. Antonio Maíllo, general coordinator of Izquierda Unida, one of the parties forming a government coalition with Sánchez’s Socialist Party, accused Moroccan authorities of failing to do their job to prevent migrants crossing from their side of the border. He went on to suggest the lapse in security may have been intentional — a form of punishment for Spain’s recent tensions with the U.S. and Israel. Noting that Morocco is a close ally of both countries, Maíllo argued that the U.S. and Israel had grown resentful of Sánchez after Spain took a clear position “against the genocide in Gaza,” and refused to allow the U.S. to use jointly operated military bases in Spanish soil for the war in Iran. Maíllo concluded: “Nothing is a coincidence when it comes to Morocco’s actions.”
Relations between Spain and Israel have been tense since Spain emerged as one of Europe’s most outspoken critics of Israel’s war in Gaza. There has also been friction between Trump and the Spanish government. Last year, Spain refused to raise military spending to 5% of its GDP, as Trump had demanded NATO countries do. After the U.S. and Israel launched a joint attack on Iran in late February, Spain refused to allow the U.S. military to use their jointly operated military bases in the south of Spain to support the military activities. In early March, Trump said of the Spanish government: “Spain has absolutely nothing that we need, other than great people, they have great people. But they don’t have great leadership.” He threatened to cut all trade with Spain, saying, “We don’t wanna have anything to do with Spain.”
The influx has also allowed European parties opposed to immigration to go on the attack. Meloni vowed Italy would “not back down by a single millimetre” when it comes to preventing “illegal immigration.” Italy’s Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani framed the suspension of the free movement of people between his country and Spain as “a necessary choice to protect the safety of our citizens and defend the European borders,” even invoking “the threat of terrorism.”
Sánchez has embraced migration-friendly policies but has never advocated for open borders or uncontrolled migration. His government points to data showing the number of illegal entries into Spain is lower than in other European countries. Spain has loaned and granted millions of euros to countries in West Africa to patrol their coasts and stop migrants from leaving. The Spanish Civil Guard has been deployed in the coasts of Senegal and Mauritania to spot vessels trying to leave the coast.
Sánchez has been a strong supporter of regulated migration and recently approved residency and work permits for hundreds of thousands of eligible undocumented migrants living in Spain. The government reported receiving over a million applications. In February, Sánchez penned an op-ed in The New York Times defending his stance on regulated migration, saying Spain’s economy was “booming” in part thanks to the country’s embrace of migrants. “Governments can buy into the zero-sum thinking of the far-right and retreat into isolation, scarcity, selfishness and decline,” he said. “Or they can harness the very same forces that, not without difficulties, have allowed our societies to thrive for centuries. For me, the choice is clear.”
Sánchez has become an increasingly lone voice in Europe when it comes to his stance on immigration. This week’s events in Ceuta will test his well-known resilience — and his ability to stand his ground against mounting pressure.