Spain has condemned the reaction of several European Union countries to an influx of roughly 60,000 migrants who crossed from Morocco into the Spanish enclave of Ceuta, calling their response “selfish, polarising and unlawful.” Spanish officials said Saturday that almost all of the migrants who reached Ceuta on July 30 have since returned, though Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska confirmed the death toll from the crossing had risen to at least 67. The diplomatic fallout intensified after Italy temporarily suspended its Schengen border-free arrangement with Spain, with Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni describing the scenes at Ceuta as “shocking.” Finland and Denmark backed Italy’s decision, while Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babiš went further, calling for Spain’s Schengen membership to be temporarily suspended entirely. Sánchez accuses allies of prejudice and political interest In a letter to European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez said he held “serious concerns” about how certain European governments had responded to the crisis. Sánchez said Spain had fully restored control over its border and prevented any unauthorized movement of migrants toward continental Europe within less than 48 hours of the initial breach. He said most EU governments had responded with “support and solidarity,” but accused others of attacking Spain out of “prejudice, fake news, ignorance, or political interest.” He also noted that Ceuta itself falls outside the Schengen area, undercutting the legal basis for some of the harsher responses. “The European Union cannot afford this kind of selfish, polarising and unlawful reaction,” Sánchez said. He called for an urgent meeting of EU interior ministers to reaffirm that securing the bloc’s external borders remains a shared responsibility across all member states. Most EU nations call for emergency talks Separately, 22 of the EU’s 27 member countries signed an open letter calling for emergency talks, citing “serious concerns” over the developments in Ceuta. The signatory nations said they welcomed the close cooperation between Spain and Morocco to ensure the swift return of migrants, but argued that a video conference of EU interior ministers was needed to reach agreement on mobilizing EU resources and support to help Spain restore “effective control” of the border and prevent further uncontrolled crossings. UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham said Saturday that he had spoken directly with Sánchez and confirmed the UK was “providing what help we can,” though he did not specify what form that assistance would take. Chaos on the ground gives way to an uneasy calm Thursday brought chaotic scenes in Ceuta as border controls in the North African enclave appeared to break down entirely, allowing large numbers of migrants to cross in a short period. By Saturday, Grande-Marlaska told reporters the situation had largely returned to normal. “Almost all of [the migrants] have already left Ceuta,” he said, adding that local businesses had reopened and that conditions had “almost entirely reversed” from the chaos of just two days earlier. The interior minister also said Spain had begun installing an inflatable maritime barrier in an effort to prevent further unauthorized crossings into the enclave. Political fallout spreads across European capitals Even as the situation on the ground eased, the diplomatic consequences continued to spread through Madrid and other European capitals. On Thursday, Meloni wrote on social media that the “uncontrolled immigration” witnessed in Ceuta posed a threat to national security, shortly before formally suspending the Schengen agreement with Spain for one month. The Schengen Area is a system of open borders spanning 29 European countries that have eliminated checks at their shared frontiers. Spain responded by summoning Italy’s ambassador in Madrid. Spain’s foreign minister said he expected “European solidarity and not partisan demagoguery” from fellow EU members. Finland’s Interior Minister Mari Rantanen said her government had begun preparations to restore internal border checks “if the need arises,” and urged other European countries to support Meloni’s decision. Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen echoed that stance, urging the EU to “consider all options, including a suspension of Schengen co-operation.” France tightened checks along its border with Spain and said it would increase its police presence there by Saturday. Portugal’s prime minister, Luis Montenegro, said he was considering reinforcing his country’s border checks as well. Von der Leyen called the images coming out of Ceuta “unacceptable.” “We cannot allow anyone to come to our Union without abiding by our rules,” she wrote on social media. German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said he supported Spain’s stated intention to prevent illegal migrants from entering the European continent and demanded that Morocco “take back illegal migrants immediately.” In Washington, the State Department characterized the incident as a direct result of Spain’s migration policies. President Donald Trump called the situation a “catastrophe,” saying it “looks like an invasion of a country by hundreds of thousands of people.” Spain defends its response and points to trafficking networks Spain has firmly defended its handling of the migrant surge. Madrid deployed troops, additional police, drones, divers and boats to Ceuta, and also sent armed forces to bolster security in Melilla, Spain’s other North African enclave, where hundreds of additional crossings were reported around the same time. Sánchez, who visited Ceuta following the influx, said he would consider reinforcing the border with Morocco and noted that Moroccan authorities were cooperating with Spanish officials on the response. He placed much of the blame on human trafficking networks, describing the incident as a “violation of Spain’s territorial integrity.” According to Sánchez, “Trafficking mafias took a self-serving interpretation of a Supreme Court ruling” that then “spread like wildfire” among migrants seeking to reach Europe. EU Commissioner Magnus Brunner, following a phone call with Spanish Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares, said that “not a single person” had managed to cross onward into mainland EU territory during the incident. A legal ruling set the stage for the surge The crisis traces back in part to a June ruling by Spain’s Supreme Court, which found that migrants intercepted at sea while attempting to reach Ceuta or Melilla could not be summarily returned to Morocco without due process. That ruling, according to Spanish officials, was misrepresented by trafficking networks and used to encourage the mass crossing attempt. Ceuta has long served as a focal point for migrants seeking to reach Europe, particularly during summer months, when crossing attempts are often organized through social media. In 2021, around 8,000 people entered Ceuta over the course of just a few days, straining diplomatic relations between Spain and Morocco at the time. Morocco itself has faced high unemployment and saw a wave of youth-led anti-government protests last year, as young Moroccans demanded better job opportunities and improved public services. Europe’s only land border with Africa Together with Melilla, Ceuta forms the European Union’s only land border with the African continent. Migrants attempting to reach the enclave can do so by swimming several kilometers along the coastline. Spain has generally taken a more welcoming approach to immigration than several of its European neighbors. In April, the Spanish government approved plans to grant legal status to roughly 500,000 undocumented migrants already living in the country, allowing them to be formally integrated into the workforce. At the time, Meloni criticized the policy, warning it would “affect its neighbours.” In June, the European Parliament approved a tougher set of migration rules granting authorities broader powers to return irregular arrivals, a shift that reflects growing pressure across the bloc to tighten migration policy even as individual nations diverge sharply on how to handle crises like the one in Ceuta. What happens next With Sánchez pushing for an emergency meeting of EU interior ministers and 22 member states separately calling for the same, attention now turns to whether the bloc can reach a unified response before further diplomatic damage is done. Italy’s one-month Schengen suspension remains in effect, and it remains unclear whether other nations that have expressed support for tighter controls, including Finland and Denmark, will follow through with similar measures of their own.
