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Sánchez Blames Russia, Israel and Far Right for Disinformation Behind Ceuta Crisis
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Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez linked Russia, Israel, and international far-right networks to a disinformation campaign following a mass migrant arrival in Ceuta in late July, while ruling out any involvement by Moroccan authorities.
Around 5,000 migrants, including 1,200 minors, remain in the enclave. Nine out of ten people who arrived during the initial wave have already been returned to Morocco, according to Cadena SER.
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In a recent interview with Cadena SER's "Hoy por Hoy," Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez stated that executive authorities continue to investigate the causes behind the unprecedented influx of people reaching the autonomous city of Ceuta.
Sánchez explained that the government must base its actions on verified facts and identified the distortion of a Supreme Court ruling regarding swimming migrants as a key factor amplified across social media platforms and criminal networks.
Sánchez specifically identified Russia, Israel, and international far-right groups as sources of fake news aimed at using migration to destabilize Spain and create divisions within Europe. However, he clarified that this activity does not necessarily indicate direct actions by the respective foreign governments and noted that the complete origin of the campaign remains under investigation.
Following the broadcast, Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar publicly rejected the claims on social media. Sa'ar stated, "In his interview today with Cadena SER, he lied again, unexpectedly accusing Israel of spreading false information about the events in Ceuta.
Addressing the role of Spain's National Intelligence Center (CNI), Sánchez confirmed that intelligence reports were provided prior to the July 30 and 31 arrivals.
However, he stated that none of the documents foresaw the true scale of the situation. "CNI provided situation reports, but there was no information predicting the scale of the crisis we were going to experience," he explained.
Sánchez denied any contradiction between statements made by Defense Minister Margarita Robles, who noted that CNI shared intelligence regarding boundary crossings, and Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska, who stated there were no warnings of a mass entry of that magnitude.
The Spanish prime minister emphasized that security measures were heightened before the event based on available data, though the full extent could not be anticipated.
The prime minister explicitly ruled out any involvement by the Moroccan government, describing Rabat’s cooperation.
"Not one of the intelligence services with which the Spanish government regularly collaborates raises doubts about the involvement, in one way or another, of the Moroccan authorities," Sánchez stated. He emphasized that resolving the situation relies entirely on mutual trust and bilateral cooperation with Morocco.
Sánchez also announced that King Felipe VI will make his first official visit to Ceuta and Melilla after more than 12 years on the throne, with plans underway to expand local reception capacity to 6,000 spots.
The Spanish government plans to increase accommodation infrastructure in Ceuta to hold up to 6,000 individuals in the near future.
Previously, researchers documented a coordinated series of fabricated videos and fake media covers produced by a Russian-linked disinformation network, which falsely claimed that Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan was preparing for a military conflict with Russia.
Distributed across social media platforms by accounts associated with Kremlin influence operations, the campaign featured fabricated reports imitating legitimate media outlets, false allegations of secret agreements between Armenia and France, and personalized videos ordered from American actors via the Cameo platform to discourage support for Pashinyan ahead of elections.
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