Declassified Files Reveal Spanish Intelligence Warned of Ceuta Border Breach
Newly released documents show Spain's intelligence agency warned of a mass migrant crossing in Ceuta, challenging Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez's account.
POLICY WIRE — Madrid, Spain — Spain’s national intelligence agency provided multiple warnings regarding a potential mass migration event into the Spanish exclave of Ceuta prior to the late July crisis, according to a cache of 40 declassified documents released by the government on Wednesday.
The collection of intelligence reports, alerts, and internal communications appears to contradict claims made by Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez concerning the extent of the government’s prior knowledge regarding the sudden influx of people.
On July 29, one day before more than 72,000 individuals began entering the city, the National Intelligence Center (CNI) sent a WhatsApp alert to the government’s delegation in Ceuta. The message warned of social media calls for an assault on the border fence and by sea scheduled for 8 p.m. the following day, noting that the groups involved had a combined total of 180,000 followers.
Additional documents show that the CNI informed Moroccan intelligence services of social media plans for migrants to breach the border by climbing the fence or swimming, potentially timing the attempt to coincide with Morocco’s national Throne Day on July 30. Similar warnings were simultaneously dispatched to the Spanish Civil Guard.
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As the surge began on July 30, a Defense Ministry report alleged that Moroccan forces remained passive and failed to intervene. The report further suggested that Morocco might be attempting to exploit the situation in Ceuta to advance its own strategic interests.
Prime Minister Sánchez dismissed the notion that these documents indicated prior knowledge of the crisis’s true scale. Writing on X, he stated that while the social media campaign was monitored, the intelligence did not serve as a reliable indicator of the nature or magnitude of the events that followed.
Sánchez continues to defend his administration’s response, maintaining there is no evidence that the Moroccan government orchestrated the incident, despite criticism and a leaked police report alleging the involvement of Moroccan officers. Meanwhile, Ceuta remains in the grip of a humanitarian crisis, with local officials estimating that up to 10,000 migrants, including unaccompanied minors, are currently living in makeshift camps or on the streets and beaches.
Reporting by Policy-Wire (PW)
