Ceuta tragedy: Were Moroccan migrants used as political pawns?

The rush of roughly 60,000 Moroccan migrants into the Spanish territory of Ceuta, which resulted in over 140 deaths, not only triggered a Europe-wide far-right political backlash, but also drew reactionary global commentary. US President Donald Trump called it an “invasion,” France tightened border checks with Spain, Italy weighed migration controls, and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz urged Morocco to “take back illegal migrants immediately.”

This unprecedented mass crossing by migrants from Morocco also reignited the ongoing political friction between Spain and Morocco over the enclaves of Ceuta and Melilla.

Recognised as a primary transit point for European migration, Ceuta has progressively tightened its border infrastructure to curb crossings. The small city, located on North Africa’s Mediterranean coast, lies about 140 miles northwest of Melilla. Both form the European Union's sole land borders with Africa.

Whilst Spain has ruled over Ceuta since the year 1580, it remains a contested European territory as Morocco disputes Spanish sovereignty.

Why now?

The latest event follows a recent Spanish Supreme Court verdict, which ruled that authorities cannot instantly return sea-intercepted migrants to Morocco. According to Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez, trafficking groups manipulated the recent Spanish Supreme Court ruling to spark the influx, defying Morocco's usual strict controls near the Ceuta border.

Nevertheless, it is unclear why the Moroccan border guards failed to stop or scatter the migrants as they crossed. Security forces in Morocco usually deter migrants from approaching the Ceuta border.

In 2021, Morocco loosened its border controls during a sharp diplomatic dispute over Western Sahara, triggering a massive surge of nearly 8,000 Moroccan and Sub-Saharan migrants into Ceuta in only two days. But the recent crossing was likely fuelled by internal domestic pressures.

Last year's youth-led protests against the Moroccan government, which saw thousands take to the streets across the country, were sparked by high unemployment and demands for improved public support. And things have not improved for the people since then.

Concurrently, diplomatic blackmail targeting Spain remains another strong possibility.

Morocco has long used border control as leverage against Europe, using sudden migration surges to show Spain and the EU how much they rely on Moroccan security.

Several migrants reported seeing social media posts claiming that the crossing was now easier for Moroccans and that if they reached Ceuta they would be transferred to mainland Spain. In the face of a state that seems to spend more time repressing political opposition than helping relieve people from their daily struggles, there is little doubt that many felt desperate enough to seize the opportunity for a better life.

Moroccan authorities seemed to be largely silent following the immediate events in Ceuta. This was despite reports that it was a coordinated campaign that was allegedly enabled via instant messaging by Moroccan border forces.

When Morocco’s Interior Ministry finally issued a statement, it denied any involvement in the crisis and blamed misinformation, human traffickers and "misinterpretations of legal provisions", which has been interpreted as a slight towards Spain's Supreme Court ruling.

Nevertheless, the Moroccan Association of Human Rights has called for an independent inquiry regarding the circumstances that led to the mass crossing. If it is discovered that the Moroccan state has used its own desperate people as political pawns in ongoing diplomatic rifts, that makes their circumstances even worse than suspected.

Israel

There are growing accusations that Israel has also had some involvement in manufacturing the recent “crisis”. Activists have accused the occupation of waging a campaign against the progressive Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez due to his solidarity with Palestine.

Sanchez labelled the war in Gaza a genocide, recognised Palestinian statehood in 2024, imposed an arms embargo on Israel while restricting ships carrying arms there from docking in Spanish ports, and urged the EU to suspend its trade deal with Israel and apply sanctions.

Meanwhile, Netanyahu has made explicit threats against Spain, declaring that he “will not allow any country to conduct a diplomatic war against [Israel] without facing an immediate price.”

It goes without saying that bilateral ties between Madrid and Tel Aviv have sharply deteriorated, marked by mutual diplomatic downgrades. Moroccan analyst Amine Ayoub highlighted that even Spain’s tensions with the US (Israel’s biggest ally) have led to “a genuine crack in Spain's strategic armour over Ceuta and Melilla. Into that crack, Morocco's most consequential new partner, Israel, is uniquely positioned to press.”

Meanwhile, Israel is only deepening its strategic and defence alignment with Rabat. And despite widespread public outcry across Morocco over the genocide in Gaza, the alliance has gone undisturbed. The relationship culminated in a January 2026 military work plan signed during the Israel-Morocco Joint Military Committee meetings in Tel Aviv.

It is therefore unsurprising that those aligned with Israel are reinforcing Morocco’s claim over Ceuta and Melilla, and capitalising on the opportunity to criticise the Spanish government.

Statements by Israeli officials slating Spain’s handling of the recent Ceuta tragedy cannot be ignored.

Israeli UN Ambassador Danny Danon criticised Spain on social media over its border migration pressures in Ceuta, telling Madrid to address its own “colonial enclaves in Africa” rather than lecture Israel.

Even the Spanish Transport Minister, Oscar Puente, hinted at Israel's involvement in the crisis when he shared Danon’s post with the comment: ‘Well, things are starting to get pretty clear.’

The spokesperson from the Republican Left of Catalonia Party, Gabriel Rufian, stated: “The Moroccan dictatorship, in the service of the US and Israel, is once again blackmailing Spain and Europe this summer by turning its own people into disposable cannon fodder.”

However, the Head of Mission at the Israeli Embassy in Spain, Dana Erlich, distanced Tel Aviv from Danon’s remarks. She stated that they did not reflect official state policy. But this doesn’t seem to have quashed the suspicions, as it is difficult for many to believe that a UN ambassador would take it upon themselves to independently make public statements of this nature.

Indeed, given Madrid’s vocal criticism of the genocide in Gaza and advocacy for Palestinian rights, which even led to an overwhelming global celebration of their World Cup victory, it isn’t difficult to imagine that opponents would draw great benefits from a destabilised Spain.

Ultimately, whether Moroccan authorities alone cooked up the recent mass crossing, or there was external meddling, doesn’t take away from the considerable tragedy of so many losing their lives to seek a better life. But for justice to be served to them and their loved ones, they do require answers quickly.

Dr. Abd-el-Kader Cheref is a US-based Algerian scholar, freelance journalist, and former Fulbright grantee. He holds a PhD from the UK's University of Exeter and serves as an Assistant Professor of Africana and Multicultural Studies at Southern Illinois University. His research and writing focus heavily on African and MENA politics, democratization processes, postcolonial studies, Islam/Islamism, migration, and political violence.

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