More than 600 migrants landed in Spain’s Balearic Islands in just two days, the largest influx the holiday archipelago has ever seen.
Police and locals say the Mediterranean archipelago has become Europe’s newest “back door” for illegal immigration, as smuggling gangs shift away from the Canary Islands and Italy. ABC reports that packed boats, some carrying Algerians, and others loaded with sub-Saharan Africans and Asians, who pay up to €14,000 for the trip, are landing on Mallorca, Formentera, and Cabrera almost daily.
The sudden explosion is no accident. Security officials blame the collapse of relations with Algeria, furious at Madrid’s flip towards Morocco in the Western Sahara dispute. Once a reliable partner, Algiers is now accused of looking the other way. “They have no incentive to stop the boats,” one Spanish officer admitted.
Deportations are virtually impossible because Algeria refuses to take its nationals back. That means most detainees are released within hours, creating what police call a massive “pull effect.” Repeat offenders walk free, encouraging others to risk the 14–18 hour crossing.
The crisis is driving a political earthquake. VOX, Spain’s nationalist right-wing party, is hoovering up disillusioned Catholic voters by calling for mass deportations and accusing the Catholic bishops of siding with government subsidies over Spain’s Christian identity. Party leader Santiago Abascal insists: “I am Catholic, but I have a political duty.” Polls show his hard line is working.
Meanwhile, ordinary Spaniards are taking matters into their own hands. Earlier this month beachgoers in Castell de Ferro tackled a group of Moroccan arrivals before police arrived—echoing grassroots border defence movements in Poland and the Netherlands. While Leftists blasted this as “far-right vigilantism,” most participants were ordinary citizens fed up with a state that won’t defend its own territory.
And the problem isn’t confined to the Balearics. Ceuta, Spain’s North African enclave, just saw its first Palestinian migrants swim in from Morocco, raising fears Rabat could once again weaponise migration to blackmail Madrid and Brussels. Overcrowded facilities, rising drownings, and collapsing public trust all point in one direction: Spain is losing control.
Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares is heading to Algiers in a last-ditch attempt to repair ties. But few believe the Algerians have forgotten Spain’s betrayal over the Sahara.