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Spain's PM Pedro Sanchez says Spain has no evidence Morocco orchestrated the deadly Ceuta border surge that brought 60,000 migrants and left more than 80 dead
By Reuters Published: 2026-09-03T12:14:00+04:00 1 min read
Police officers and Spanish soldiers escort a big group of migrants to the border to take them out of Spain, after mass crossings of migrants on foot and by sea from Morocco into Spanish territory, in Ceuta, Spain, August 1, 2026. (Reuters)
MADRID: Spain has not seen any evidence to conclude that July's deadly border surge from Morocco into its enclave of Ceuta was orchestrated or carried out by Moroccan authorities, Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez told lawmakers on Thursday.
During the border surge an estimated 60,000 people had reached Ceuta in just a few days, the largest migration surge between Morocco and Spain in years.
More than 80 migrants died on both sides of the border, including some who drowned and others who were killed in a stampede, authorities said.
Spain was forced to deploy military units to reinforce police in the Spanish enclave of Ceuta in North Africa as migrants surged by sea and land from Morocco into the territory, and authorities sought to close off another Spanish enclave nearby.