Spain’s Complex Ties With Morocco Fuel Speculation Over Ceuta Migrant Surge

THE NEW YORK TIMES: Rumors swirled that Morocco, perhaps spurred by Israel and the United States, organized a recent border disaster. That unproven speculation, experts said, was exacerbated by the region’s complicated history.

This screenshot has been taken from this NYT article. | Migrants from sub-Saharan Africa waiting on a beach for humanitarian assistance after about tens of thousands of people, mostly from Morocco, surged across the border into Ceuta, Spain, this month. Credit: Finbarr O'Reilly for The New York Times
The actor Javier Bardem wondered if Israel had something to do with the rush of over 70,000 migrants last month from Morocco to Spain. Marjorie Taylor Greene, the former Republican congresswoman and veteran conspiracy theorist, suggested the Republican Party was behind it. Others said King Mohammed VI of Morocco had set off the crisis to mess with Spain.

Experts have said that there is no evidence that any state played a role in masterminding the unprecedented migration to Ceuta, a Spanish exclave in North Africa. The Spanish and Moroccan governments blamed the surge, which killed about 90 migrants before most of the people involved had retreated to Morocco, on a viral social media misinformation campaign by smugglers.

But that hasn’t stopped all sorts of conjecture about what really happened. That speculation is partly rooted, analysts said, in the deeply complicated relationship between Spain and Morocco.

Spain occupied parts of Morocco for much of the 20th century, and many Moroccans still contest Spain’s control over its African territories, including Ceuta. Yet, the two countries are also interdependent for intricate economic, political and geopolitical reasons.

They have conflicting positions on Algeria, Israel and the Trump administration. Spain has a fraught relationship with Washington and Jerusalem, but a warming one with Algiers. Morocco, however, sees Algeria as a rival but is improving ties with Israel and the United States. » | Jason Horowitz | Reporting from Ferrol, Spain | Tuesday, August 11, 2026

Hundreds in Morocco Gather Near Ceuta Border in Anxious Wait for Missing Loved Ones

THE GUARDIAN: People hope to see friends or relatives among those still returning as death toll from mass crossing nears 100

Hundreds of people have gathered in the northern Moroccan town of Fnideq, near the border with Spain’s Ceuta, flashing photos of their missing loved ones to passersby in the hope of tracking them down.

Their perch was the same small tranche of land that made headlines around the world last week as extraordinary scenes emerged of about 72,000 people making their way into Ceuta, a tiny Spanish territory in north Africa.

On Tuesday, as interior ministers from across the EU joined an emergency videoconference to grapple with the lingering tensions, the focus on the Moroccan side of the border with Ceuta was on the harrowing death toll.

At least 88 people have died in Ceuta, according to local officials, and another 11 in Morocco, while dozens of others remain missing.

“I have just one son,” said Hadijja, who had been waiting at the border since Saturday, scanning the steady stream of returnees for any sign of her 23-year-old son. “I haven’t had any news of him; he’s not answering his mobile phone.” » | Soraya Aybar Laafou in Fnideq and Ashifa Kassam in Madrid | Wednesday, August 5, 2026

Ceuta Leader Accuses Morocco over ‘Atrocity’ of Mass Border Crossing

THE GUARDIAN: Juan Jesús Vivas says influx seen as ‘at least encouraged or permitted’ by Rabat, as Spain demands EU solidarity

This photo was taken from this Guardian article. | People sit in the shade of a tree on a beach in Ceuta on Monday. Photograph: Violeta Santos Moura/Reuters
A growing chorus of voices has accused Morocco of helping to fuel the crisis in Ceuta, with the leader of the Spanish enclave describing last week’s border crossings as an attack on Spain’s territorial integrity that was seen as being “if not orchestrated, at least encouraged or permitted by Morocco”.

Spanish officials ⁠said on Monday that an estimated 69,500 people who had arrived late last week in Ceuta, a tiny Spanish territory in north Africa, had returned to Morocco in recent days. About 2,500 people who had made the crossing were believed to still be in Ceuta.

The extraordinary influx had overwhelmed the city of 84,000 people and set off a political crisis across the EU as some member states laid blame on Spain.

In Ceuta, leaders pointed to the broader picture of what had transpired. “It’s an atrocity,” said Juan Jesús Vivas, the long-serving conservative leader of the territory. “There are 88 bodies in the morgue, and there are more on the other side of the border.” » | Ashifa Kassam in Madrid, Okba Mohammad in Ceuta and Lisa O’Carroll in London | Monday, August 3, 2026

Democracy Now! Why Did 60,000 Migrants Cross from Morocco into Spain's Ceuta? Moroccan Dutch Professor Explains

August 3, 2026 | An estimated 60,000 people from Morocco crossed into the Spanish enclave of Ceuta, on the African side of the Strait of Gibraltar, in an unprecedented mass movement last week. At least 72 people died during the attempt. The sudden influx of migrants overwhelmed the city's residents, leading to a humanitarian crisis while border police deployed water cannons, tear gas and warning shots to deter people from crossing. According to Spain's Interior Ministry, nearly all of the migrants returned to Morocco just a day later.

Miriyam Aouragh, an anthropologist and the daughter of Moroccan immigrants to Europe, says the driving factors for the mass movement are a combination of shifting entry policies to Spain and increasing economic inequality in Morocco that "has given a sort of empowering incentive to people to try to go to Spain" via Ceuta. The city, which is surrounded by Morocco along a five-mile-long border, dates back to the Phoenician era and has been under Portuguese or Spanish control since 1415. The Moroccan government claims that Ceuta is occupied and colonized territory, while Spain considers it an integral part of the Spanish state.

‘Do You Think if I Had a Job I Would Have Gone?’

THE NEW YORK TIMES: Moroccan migrants described their despair at their economic future, explaining what propelled them across the border with Spain.

When King Mohammed VI of Morocco addressed his people on Wednesday to commemorate his 27th year on the throne, he spoke hopefully of his North African nation’s future.

Morocco, he said, was safe and stable, with a growing economy making great strides in tourism, investment and manufacturing.

“This is a pivotal moment in our nation’s development,” the 62-year-old monarch said. “A time when confidence and optimism should prevail over despair and frustration.”

Over the next two days, however, tens of thousands of his citizens tried to escape the country. Driven by a bleak sense of their prospects in Morocco, they braved confrontations with the police and dangerous swims in the sea to reach the Spanish territory of Ceuta, hoping for better lives.

“I tried to work and have a job and make a living, but there is nothing for me here,” said Mohammed Kinani, a 21-year-old construction worker, who had been forced back to Morocco. “If I don’t leave this country, there is nothing that will save me.”

Mr. Kinani was part of a sudden exodus that began on Thursday when 50,000 to 60,000 migrants began forcing their way into Ceuta, a tiny Spanish territory on the North African coast. By Saturday, many of the migrants had left, lacking food and water, and the Spanish security forces expelled others, but not before the crisis had given far-right politicians across Europe new ammunition to blast their opponents’ views on immigration.

The Spanish authorities said on Sunday that they had recorded 72 deaths during the crisis. The Moroccan government reported 11 deaths. Both sides said most of the deaths were from drowning.

Before the startling scenes of chaos at the border, the Moroccan government had much to celebrate: investments in logistics and industry, preparations to co-host the men’s World Cup in 2030, and strong relations with President Trump, who has lavished the country of 38 million and its monarch with praise.

But the Ceuta migration crisis exposed a deep dismay among its young people, who, when faced with scant job opportunities, recurrent droughts and frequent arrests of government critics, chose to vote with their feet and get out. » | Ben Hubbard and Aida Alami | Photographs by Sergey Ponomarev | Reporting from Fnideq, Morocco | Monday, August 3, 2026

ALSO READ:

What to Know About Ceuta: The peninsula on Morocco’s northern coast, which Spain has governed for centuries, has been a frequent site of mass migrant crossings and political tensions. »

Ceuta: Moroccan State Involved In Migrant Crossings | International Crisis Group Director

Aug 2, 2026 | “We have testimonies by Moroccan migrants who crossed into Ceuta, who said quite openly that Moroccan security forces told them to go into Ceuta and to go to Spain.”

The project director for North Africa at the International Crisis Group has said that he has seen evidence that the Moroccan state was complicit in the events that saw thousands of migrants flood into the Spanish enclave from the North African country last week.

EU to Hold Emergency Talks Over Ceuta Migrant Surge | BBC News

August 2, 2026

Spain Says the Crisis in Its Tiny Exclave Ceuta Is Under Control. What Happens Next? | DW News

August 1, 2026 | Spain says most of the thousands of migrants who crossed from Morocco into Ceuta have left again. But the crisis exposed how one small border can become a pressure point between Africa and Europe. We look at why people took the risk, why many turned back, and what all of that means for Spain, Morocco and the EU.

How 50,000 People Surged Into a Spanish Exclave in Africa

THE NEW YORK TIMES: On Thursday, tens of thousands of Moroccans broke into Ceuta, a Spanish territory that neighbors Morocco. By Friday evening, most of them had left, hungry and disappointed.

Like so many others in Morocco, Mohammed Ahmidho saw on his social media feeds early Thursday that the heavily guarded border his country shared with the Spanish territory of Ceuta was open.

Soon enough, he joined a crowd in the tens of thousands, many of whom were astonished to see Moroccan police urge them, as he recalled, to “come to Spain.” Some climbed over the fence, as he did, or dove through holes in the chain-link, or swam across the maritime border. Some wore wet-suits, sometimes kicking with flippers, or floated to the Spanish coast in orange life preservers, pink inflatable doughnuts around their waists. At least 60 people died in the mayhem.

“A lot of people came,” said Mr. Ahmidho, 37. “A lot.”

He was among roughly 50,000 people who crossed the border into a Spanish town of only 84,000 residents on Thursday and early Friday, according to the Spanish interior ministry. That was a more intense surge than in any equivalent period during the peak of the European migration crisis in 2015.

By Friday morning, the city looked like the emergency that Europe has been trying to avoid since that era of mass migration 11 years ago, the last time so many non-Europeans surged into European-held territory, upended the continent’s politics and spurred the rise of its anti-immigrant right. » | Jason Horowitz | Reporting from Ceuta, Spain | Saturday, August 1, 2026

Morocco ‘Facilitated Migrant Crossings’ into Spain

THE TELEGRAPH: Western intelligence suspects north African country helped 60,000 cross into tiny neighbouring territory of Ceuta

Screenshot taken from this Telegraph article. | Throngs of arrivals swam towards a crowded shore, while others rushed across the land border by taking advantage of weak security | Credit: Abdel Majid Bziouat/AFP via Getty Images
Morocco facilitated the sudden influx of 60,000 migrants into the Spanish enclave of Ceuta, Western intelligence sources suspect. Sources told The Telegraph that the surge could have served as a punishment amid diplomatic frustrations with Spain.

Moroccan officials are believed to be frustrated with Pedro Sánchez, the socialist prime minister of Spain, over his pursuit of gas deals with rival Algeria.

Morocco previously funnelled 8,000 people into Ceuta in 2021 following a dispute with Madrid over the sovereignty of the Western Sahara, which preceded a sudden policy change in Spain.

Ceuta was overrun by entire families swimming, climbing and storming across the border during a chaotic 48 hours on Thursday and Friday. At least 57 people died, either by drowning or being crushed at the border fence.

The scenes plunged Europe into crisis, with leaders threatening to freeze Spain out of free movement and impose border controls.

The Trump administration, meanwhile, rounded on the Left-wing Spanish government for what it called a weak stance on migration. » | Rozina Sabur National Security Editor. James Crisp Europe Editor. Joe Barnes Diplomatic Editor. Antonio Sempere in Ceuta | Friday, July 31, 2026

Migrants Storm Spanish Border - What's Happening in Ceuta and Why | BBC News

July 31, 2026 | Tens of thousands of migrants arrived in the Spanish North African enclave of Ceuta in 24 hours. But how did they get there? And why did they come now?

Here’s what we know about the migrant crossings, as well as the reaction from Spain and beyond.

Thousands of Migrants Try to Enter Spanish Enclave of Ceuta from Morocco | BBC News

July 31, 2026 | About 49,000 migrants have crossed into Spain's North African enclave of Ceuta from Morocco in the last 24 hours, officials estimate.

Videos and photos showed thousands of people swimming into the city on Thursday, while local media reported crossings continuing overnight.

This development comes after Spain's Supreme Court ruled this month that migrants stopped at sea while trying to reach Ceuta or Melilla, another Spanish enclave, cannot be summarily returned to Morocco.

At Least 18 Die as 49,000 People Cross to Spanish Enclave of Ceuta from Morocco

THE GUARDIAN: Some drowned and others caught up in crush, official says, as incident prompts criticism of Spain from France and Italy

Screenshot taken from this Guardian article. | People try to cross from Morocco into the Spanish enclave of Ceuta on Thursday. Photograph: Antonio Sempere/AP
At least 18 people have died trying to reach the Spanish enclave of Ceuta after around 49,000 migrants entered the tiny territory from Morocco in a matter of hours, triggering a political crisis for the Madrid government and unleashing a barrage of criticism from other EU countries.

The large influx of people arriving in Ceuta by swimming across from neighbouring Morocco or scaling the high border fence has caught the city of 85,000 off guard and resulted in what one local police association has called a “serious humanitarian crisis”.

Spain’s prime minister, Pedro Sánchez – who is due to visit Ceuta on Friday with the interior minister, Fernando Grande-Marlaska – is under huge pressure from political opponents and other European countries to come up with a swift and comprehensive response.

The latest incident dwarfs the last mass border crossing in May 2021, when 10,000 people entered the territory over the course of two days by taking advantage of a loosening of border controls by Morocco. » | Sam Jones in Madrid and Angela Giuffrida in Rome | Friday, July 31, 2026

Articles on this problem appear in German on this blog here »

THE NEW YORK TIMES:

Live Updates: Spanish Leader Rushes to Ceuta After Thousands of Migrants Burst Into Territory: Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez was set to arrive in Ceuta, a Spanish exclave in North Africa, amid an escalating crisis for his pro-immigration government. »

What to Know About Ceuta: The peninsula on Morocco’s northern coast that Spain has governed for centuries has been a frequent site of mass migrant crossings and political tensions. »

Morocco: Gen Z revolt | ARTE.tv Documentary

Jan 20, 2026 | On 14 September 2025, a demonstration broke out outside the Hassan II hospital in Agadir after eight women died during caesarean sections. These tragedies sparked a wave of anger at the state of the health service in Morocco. Protests quickly spread throughout the country with young people taking the lead.

Morocco Accused of ‘Horrific’ Abuse of Detained Gen Z Protesters

THE GUARDIAN: As country prepares to host Africa Cup of Nations, families and rights groups tell of police brutality, with hundreds still held

The arbitrary detention of hundreds of gen Z protesters in Morocco and alleged “horrific” beatings have been condemned by human rights groups, as the country prepares to host the Africa Cup of Nations on Sunday.

A wave of youth-led demonstrations swept across Morocco in late September and early October – the biggest since the 2011 Arab spring – in protest at underfunded healthcare and education.

The government responded to the protests, known as “Gen Z 212”, after the country’s dialling code, by arbitrarily arresting thousands of people, human rights groups said. The Guardian was told that people had been beaten and left for hours without food or water while in police custody. » | Renée Boskaljon | Thursday, December 18, 2025

Blasphemy in Morocco with Mohamed

Jul 30, 2024 | Interview with a Moroccan ex-Muslim ‪@ skeptic mohamed‬ who applied for asylum in Sweden after being attacked for his beliefs and political statements

Please be aware that some people might be offended by some of the content in this video. I am posting this discussion because it is very interesting and very informative. Posting it, however, should not necessarily be construed as a full endorsement.

My visitors and followers will know by now that I am committed to freedom of thought and freedom of expression. I abhor censorship in all its forms. I am also committed to the concept of freedom of religion and man’s right to reject what he considers to be myth and fable, too. If a person rejects the concept of God, then so be it. Advancement in this world can only be achieved with freedom of thought and freedom of expression. Societies which reject freedom of thought, freedom of expression, and freedom of religion, or punish people for the agnosticism or atheism are always held back in their scientific and societal progress.

Blasphemy laws are a nonsense and do not belong in the modern world. – © Mark Alexander

The Moroccan atheist referred to in this video is Kacem El Gazzali. You can find information on him on WIKIPEDIA here.

As Morocco Tries to Rebuild After Quake, Tradition Is Top of Many Minds

THE NEW YORK TIMES: Experts say the government should preserve cultural and architectural heritage, while also building disaster-resistant homes. In the meantime, residents are living in tents and in limbo.

The Agadir Oufella, a fortress in Morocco, was damaged during an earthquake in 1960 but has been restored more recently. | Hannah Reyes Morales for The New York Times
Boujemaa Kouti still remembers the screams of his neighbors trapped under the rubble of their houses, calling for help that horrific night 63 years ago.

He was just 8 and asleep when a large earthquake struck Morocco in 1960, wiping out entire neighborhoods in the coastal city of Agadir, near the Atlas Mountains, and killing at least 12,000 people.

“I saw stars when I woke up,” Mr. Kouti said, and then he heard “people screaming ‘Save me’ — calling for their family.”

Mr. Kouti’s older brother died, and the Kouti family lived in tents for almost a year as Agadir was mostly rebuilt at a location nearby deemed safer.

Rubble was bulldozed and cleared, and vast amounts of concrete was poured as buildings with stricter seismic standards went up.

The Agadir Oufella, a 16th-century fortress partly damaged in the quake, was eventually restored, and a memorial was erected on top of a hill where many died. » | Aida Alami, Reporting from Agadir and Marrakesh, Morocco | Sunday, November 19, 2023

Morocco After the Quake | Between Us

Sep 21, 2023 | When senior foreign correspondent Stefanie Dekker arrived in Morocco, she witnessed the extent of the destruction of the earthquake that shook the country on September 8.

In this episode of Between Us, Dekker reveals the challenges faced when covering a natural disaster as well as the emotional toll it has taken on everyone.

Libya and Morocco: Two Very Different Responses to Catastrophe

THE GUARDIAN: The aftermath of an earthquake in Morocco and flooding in Libya has shown up the state of the two nations

Not one but two disasters have struck in recent days – the earthquake in Morocco and devastating flooding in Libya.

At least 2,900 people are known to have died in the 6.8-magnitude earthquake that struck in Morocco’s High Atlas mountains a week ago, and the authorities say the death toll will rise.

Three days later, on 11 September, intense flooding in Libya led to the collapse of two dams that unleashed a torrent of mud and water into Derna, destroying large parts of the eastern city.

On Friday morning, the Libyan Red Crescent said the number of people who had died in the city had risen to 11,000 and was expected to rise further as rescue teams arrived and helped to retrieve more bodies from the mud. Officials said 30,000 people were missing.

The full scale of the disaster may be far greater, as few international aid agencies or news reporters have been able to reach the flood-hit area. This area is controlled not by the government in Tripoli but by a rival warlord.

Morocco and Libya may be geographically relatively close to each other – just a 2,000km hop across Algeria – but they could not be two more different countries. This has had a huge impact on their ability to respond to the disasters. » | Rupert Neate and Peter Beaumont | Friday, September 15, 2023

Morocco to Help Rebuild 50,000 Earthquake-damaged Homes – BBC News

Sep 15, 2023 | Moroccan authorities have announced plans to fund the rebuilding of about 50,000 homes damaged by last week's earthquake. They will provide more than $13,000 (£10,460) for the reconstruction of homes which have been completely destroyed, and $8,000 for those with partial damage.

Residents will meanwhile be given temporary shelters and each household will receive a grant of $3,000. The exact number of people left homeless is still not known.

Nearly 3,000 people have been confirmed dead, and more than 5,000 injured in the 6.8 magnitude quake.