{"id":64717,"date":"2026-08-02T13:13:07","date_gmt":"2026-08-02T13:13:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/64717\/"},"modified":"2026-08-02T13:13:07","modified_gmt":"2026-08-02T13:13:07","slug":"why-has-eu-called-an-emergency-meeting-on-spain-migrant-surge-migration-news","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/64717\/","title":{"rendered":"Why has EU called an emergency meeting on Spain migrant surge? | Migration News"},"content":{"rendered":"

The European Union has called an emergency meeting after about 60,000 <\/a>migrants entered Spain\u2019s North African territory of Ceuta over a few days.<\/p>\n

Spain\u2019s coastguard is patrolling the waters near Ceuta with the authorities on Sunday saying most of the migrants who crossed over have already been returned to neighbouring Morocco.<\/p>\n

Recommended Stories list of 4 itemsend of list<\/p>\n

At least 72 people died while trying to reach the enclave in the territory\u2019s largest ever mass migration.<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s what we know:<\/p>\n

What happened in Ceuta?<\/p>\n

Ceuta\u2019s population is just 84,000, but from Wednesday to Friday, an estimated 60,000 migrants entered the territory, Ceuta\u2019s top official Juan Jesus Vivas said. Spain\u2019s Ministry of Interior put the figure at 50,000.<\/p>\n

Many people swam from Morocco using wetsuits and inflatables and got around the border fence by swimming through or pushing through the wire. Local authorities said reception centres were overwhelmed, and they called for an emergency response.<\/p>\n

\u201cI crossed through the sand at the beginning of Castillejos, then climbed over a wall belonging to the Moroccan police. Then I entered across the border by swimming. Well, I swam about 200 metres [220 yards] in the sea, and that\u2019s all,\u201d a Moroccan migrant told the Reuters news agency.<\/p>\n

By Saturday, however, \u201calmost all\u201d had left and the situation in the territory had practically returned to normal, Spanish Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska said.<\/p>\n

The scale of the influx was far bigger than the last such event in May 2021. Vivas said at the time that about 12,000 people crossed the border from Morocco into Ceuta over two days.<\/p>\n

Ceuta was colonised by Spain in 1580 and remains under its control. It is one of only two remaining European-held territories on the African mainland, along with Melilla.<\/p>\n

The enclave, a main entry point into Spain and the EU for asylum seekers and immigrants, is surrounded by high border fences, surveillance systems and a permanent deployment of Spain\u2019s Civil Guard and National Police.<\/p>\n

Why did the EU call an emergency meeting?<\/p>\n

Ireland, which holds the rotating EU presidency, said it had called an emergency video conference meeting of the bloc\u2019s interior ministers to discuss the crisis on Tuesday.<\/p>\n

The meeting was called after 22 of the EU\u2019s 27 member states issued a joint letter calling for \u201ccoordinated action and the strengthening of external borders\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe cannot allow uncontrolled mass crossings, the instrumentalisation of migration or other hybrid threats to create the perception that illegal entry into the European Union is possible. And, that a migrant\u2019s illegal entry can turn into legal stay,\u201d they said.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, Italy suspended its Schengen open-border policy with Spain. Madrid condemned the move, and its practical effect remains unclear, given the two countries do not share a border.<\/p>\n

France and Britain expressed \u201csolidarity\u201d with Spain, but France also announced a five-fold increase in the number of police at its border with Spain. Portugal also said it would beef up controls at its southern land and maritime borders.<\/p>\n

A leading conservative European politician called for the European border agency to have more powers.<\/p>\n

\u201cI want us to give Frontex, our European external border agency, meaning our border protection in Europe, real enforcement powers,\u201d Manfred Weber, leader of the European People\u2019s Party, said on Saturday.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf a left-wing government in Spain is not willing to secure the external border, then Frontex must also be given command authority,\u201d Weber said. \u201cThen Europe must also go to this border and restore order.\u201d<\/p>\n

Spain\u2019s government is led by the Socialist Workers\u2019 Party.<\/p>\n

What could have triggered the migration surge?<\/p>\n

It was not clear why this happened now.<\/p>\n

One possible reason for the timing could be a Spanish Supreme Court ruling on July 8 that said migrants intercepted at sea cannot be summarily returned. The ruling does not apply to those who enter Spain by land.<\/p>\n

\u201cWithout a doubt, the July 8 ruling \u2026 has played a role,\u201d said Ignacio Cembrero, a Spanish journalist who specialises in migration in North Africa. \u201cBut that doesn\u2019t explain the level of mobilisation.\u201d<\/p>\n

Other experts have questioned this theory, saying few migrants would have been aware of the court ruling. They argued that the Spanish government\u2019s relatively open migration policy could have played a part.<\/p>\n

Grande-Marlaska blamed people-smuggling networks for exploiting vulnerable migrants and spreading misleading interpretations of the Supreme Court ruling.<\/p>\n

The interior minister told reporters in Ceuta that Spain had largely \u2060restored order within 24 hours but warned that the crisis was not yet formally over and reinforced police and military deployments would remain as long as needed although overnight crossings had fallen to about zero.<\/p>\n

\u201cMorocco isn\u2019t any threat to \u2060Ceuta or the rest of Spain. It\u2019s a fully reliable partner,\u201d he said, adding that there had \u2060been no intelligence indicating a mass entry was imminent.<\/p>\n

Many of the migrants interviewed said they just wanted the opportunity to make a better life for themselves and their families.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere has been a concerted action by countries which are basically enemies to Europe to try to undermine European unity in one of the areas where Europe\u2019s unity is one of the weakest, migration, and where it\u2019s the easiest to exploit European disunity,\u201d Karel Lannoo, CEO of the Centre for European Policy Studies, told Al Jazeera.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe want to reindustrialise, we want to become stronger in manufacturing, but at the same time we don\u2019t know how to get the workers. Overall, Europe needs more migrants, even for skilled labour. The problem is that many European countries have very tight migration control.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"AMigrants wave from rocks on the coast near a Ceuta border post on August 2, 2026, with a Civil Guard patrol boat visible in the background [AFP]<\/p>\n

Some observers said Morocco may have orchestrated this incident under the encouragement of the United States and Israel.<\/p>\n

Both US President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu have criticised Spain\u2019s recent actions and rhetoric, particularly in relation to Palestine and the US-Israel war on Iran.<\/p>\n

While Spain refused to allow a US-flagged cargo ship carrying weapons for Israel to dock at Algeciras in 2024, Moroccan authorities welcomed the warship.<\/p>\n

What is Morocco doing?<\/p>\n

Some also believe Morocco may have facilitated the migration crisis as a tool of diplomatic pressure.<\/p>\n

Ever since it gained its independence in 1956, Morocco has claimed sovereignty over Ceuta and Melilla. Spain has flatly rejected any talks to change the status quo.<\/p>\n

Cembrero said it appeared Moroccan security forces had been \u201csitting on their hands\u201d since Wednesday. He argued that Morocco had \u201cseen an opportunity\u201d to force Spain to negotiate.<\/p>\n

\u201cTo reach the breakwater that marks the border between Ceuta and Morocco, there are cordons of police and auxiliary forces, and it\u2019s obvious they\u2019ve been allowed through,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Carlos Echeverria, director of the Ceuta and Melilla Observatory, said the use of the controversial term \u201cinvasion\u201d could be justified, given that \u201cthousands of people are illegally crossing an international border, putting pressure on a neighbouring country\u201d.<\/p>\n

On Saturday, the Moroccan Association for Human Rights called for an independent inquiry to \u201cshed full light\u201d on the causes of the influx.<\/p>\n

Why did Trump raise the issue?<\/p>\n

Trump has used this as a campaign opportunity. He tried to link the Ceuta situation to his administration\u2019s and Republican Party\u2019s hardline migration policies.<\/p>\n

\u201cI saw Spain yesterday, and I watched the catastrophe that took place. It looks like an invasion of a country by hundreds of thousands of people,\u201d he said on Friday.<\/p>\n

Trump sought to tie the issue to midterm elections in November, in which Republicans look hard-pressed to retain their narrow majority in Congress. \u201cThat same thing\u2019s going to happen to us if the Republicans don\u2019t get elected, except worse, much bigger,\u201d Trump told his cabinet at the Camp David presidential retreat in Maryland.<\/p>\n

The US Department of State on Saturday updated its travel advisory for Spain, raising the threat for Ceuta to Level 3 and urging Americans to reconsider travel due to unrest.<\/p>\n

The department said the \u201cmassive and uncontrolled arrival of migrants from Morocco to Ceuta may lead to unpredictable and dangerous security situations\u201d.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, Esteban Beltran, director of Amnesty International Spain, urged Spanish and Moroccan authorities to prioritise human rights in their response to the situation.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe principle of non-refoulement is absolute, and collective expulsions are prohibited in all cases,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The European Union has called an emergency meeting after about 60,000 migrants entered Spain\u2019s North African territory of…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":64718,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[66,202,203,2264,273,21207,17],"class_list":["post-64717","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-spain","tag-europe","tag-middle-east","tag-migration","tag-morocco","tag-news","tag-refugees","tag-spain"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/64717","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=64717"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/64717\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/64718"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=64717"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=64717"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=64717"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}