Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez addresses police report suggesting July border surge was planned to overwhelm border controls.<\/p>\n
Published On 3 Sep 20263 Sep 2026<\/p>\n
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez says Madrid has found no evidence that Morocco orchestrated a surge of 70,000 people who crossed into its North African enclave of Ceuta a month ago.<\/p>\n
Speaking in parliament on Thursday, Sanchez responded to claims in a police report that emerged this week and suggested the border rush into Ceuta in late July was planned to overwhelm border controls.<\/p>\n
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\u201cI can assure you that no institution \u2013 not the diplomatic service nor the European Commission nor any international body \u2013 has provided the Spanish government with any solid evidence that Morocco planned or carried out the incident. None whatsoever,\u201d Sanchez said.<\/p>\n
However, he said Moroccan police did allow crossings to occur during a 10-hour peak period on \u200cJuly 30. Spanish authorities had yet to determine whether this was due to inaction or an inability to contain the influx, Sanchez added.<\/p>\n
In late July, about 72,000 people swam and rushed into Ceuta, a Spanish enclave with a population of 84,000 that borders Morocco.<\/p>\n
The police report, commissioned by a High Court \u2060judge last month, alleged that Moroccan security forces were initially deployed in smaller \u2060numbers than usual near the border and did not make a serious attempt to disperse the crowds.<\/p>\n
Moroccan authorities previously denied any permissiveness, blaming the misinterpretation of a Spanish court ruling that appeared to open a legal loophole for arrivals by sea \u200cand a social media campaign<\/a> that spread information about a mass crossing.<\/p>\n Sanchez has defended Morocco during the crisis, highlighting Rabat\u2019s cooperation<\/a> in returning most of the migrants within 48 hours.<\/p>\n However, about 5,000 people, including 1,200 children, remain in the city weeks later, according to the national government.<\/p>\n