An unverified report circulating Saturday morning claims that the Spanish authorities' narrative regarding the migrant crisis in the Ceuta enclave has been exposed as false, and that the city remains full of illegal migrants from Morocco.
A new, unverified report circulating Saturday morning claims that the Spanish authorities' narrative regarding the migrant crisis in the Ceuta enclave has been exposed as false, and that the city remains full of illegal migrants from Morocco. The report directly challenges the official account from Thursday night, when Spanish authorities stated that 48,300 migrants had returned to Morocco and that nearly all of the estimated 60,000 who entered had been repatriated.
As The Zioneer reported on Thursday night, Spanish authorities announced that the rapid repatriation marked a significant reversal, with officials also emphasizing that the integrity of the Schengen area was fully guaranteed. Earlier in the day, the death toll had risen to at least 57, and a 9-year-old girl was reported missing amid the chaos. The repatriation figures escalated throughout the day: from 25,000 at midday to over 37,500, then to 48,300 by the evening. Many returning migrants cited “hunger and oppression” within the enclave, where local infrastructure had been overwhelmed by the influx.
The crisis began in late July when tens of thousands of migrants crossed from Morocco into Ceuta, a Spanish enclave on the African continent. The influx increased the local population by more than 60% in a single day, pushing reception centers to over 2,400% capacity. Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez, visiting the area, described the mass entry as a violation of Spain's territorial integrity. A court ruling earlier that day had blocked the immediate repatriation of migrants arriving by sea, complicating the government's response, though mass repatriations still occurred.
The new report has not been independently verified. It is not yet clear whether the claim reflects a genuine continued presence of large numbers of migrants, or whether it is part of an information campaign. The Zioneer will continue to monitor the situation.
16 developments
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- DevelopingAbu Ali Express: Spanish police, soldiers not intervening in Ceuta as migrants mock authorities
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