Morocco has revealed that it warned Spain in late July about the risk of a migrant surge in Ceuta, arguing that a Spanish court ruling contributed to the crisis. Rabat denies any security failure, while Madrid insists it never received such a warning.
Morocco has revealed that it alerted Spain to the risk of a migrant surge in Ceuta weeks before the crisis unfolded, rejecting accusations that its security forces failed to prevent the influx.
A senior Moroccan official, speaking on condition of anonymity to a small group of media outlets, said Rabat warned Madrid around July 22–23 that a recent ruling by Spain’s Supreme Court could increase migratory pressure on the Spanish enclave of Ceuta.
The court ruled that the immediate return of migrants does not apply to people who arrive in Spain by sea. According to the Moroccan official, the decision was widely misinterpreted, encouraging more migrants to attempt the crossing.
“We told them that this ruling would create a problem, and it did,” the official said.
The official argued that the misunderstanding surrounding the court’s decision became one of the main factors behind the unprecedented rise in migrant arrivals at Ceuta.
Spain, however, has denied Morocco’s account, maintaining that it never received any prior warning from Rabat. The Spanish government has also rejected reports by some local media claiming that the country’s intelligence services had alerted the Interior Ministry to the risk of mass arrivals in Ceuta.
