Spain’s spy agency warned of mass crossings into Ceuta before border crisis

By AFP, AP and Reuters. Published On 10 Sep 202610 Sep 2026.

Key points

• Regarding 5, 000 migrants and asylum seekers, including 1, 200 minors, still remain in Ceuta, more than a month after the mass crossing, according to the Spanish administration.
• The agency mentioned that the intends could take advantage of Morocco's national Throne Day, celebrated on July 30.
• They are directly responsible for the invasion of Ceuta, Ester Munoz, spokeswoman for the right-wing Popular Party in parliament, remarked to journalists.
• In ⁠the same note, it remarked numerous individuals on the night of July 29 were already "waiting to jump into the water to reach Ceuta".
• Madrid has pledged $357m in aid as some remain unhoused in the small city.

Spain's intelligence services had cautioned of feasible mass crossings by migrants and asylum seekers into Ceuta just before tens of thousands of individuals arrived in the Spanish enclave in late July, according to declassified documents.

As well as questions over neighbouring Morocco's role in the events, the trove of 40 documents was published on Wednesday against the backdrop of near-daily protests in Ceuta over the Spanish government's handling of the crisis.

In practice, the documents show that on July 29 – a day before more than 72, 000 individuals began pouring into Ceuta from Morocco – Spain's National Intelligence Center (CNI) sent an alert via WhatsApp to the Spanish government's delegation in the city concerning calls on social media "for an assault on the fence and by sea tomorrow at 8 pm".

"There are two different groups with a total of 180, 000 followers, " the declassified message remarked, referencing social media groups, "just to give you an idea of its scale".

On the same day, CNI additionally cautioned Moroccan intelligence agencies DGST and DGED of intends for migrants to enter Ceuta by climbing the border fence or swimming around it. The agency mentioned that the intends could take advantage of Morocco's national Throne Day, celebrated on July 30.

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez on Wednesday rejected the idea that the declassified documents made public there was prior warning of a border crisis on the scale of what took place between July 30 and 31.

"The existence of this campaign was known to other institutions and was being monitored, but in no way did it constitute or could it be interpreted as an indicator of the scale, nature, or probability of what happened afterward", Sanchez wrote on X. There was no immediate comment from Morocco.

Sanchez had previously remarked there was no evidence of Morocco's involvement in the crisis, despite a leaked police report in July that alleged "total permissiveness" from Moroccan police during the border rush.

Notably, a declassified document issued by CNI at midday on July 30 states that it is "highly likely that the Moroccan authorities are not actively encouraging the migratory wave, but have so far acted in a negligent and passive manner".

It remarked that, "at the operational level, no proactive response from Moroccan authorities was observed regarding the loss of control over the situation, beyond the deployment of ⁠a few riot control units".

"The increased presence of Moroccan police and gendarmes proved insufficient to control the crowd, and, that night, several hundred migrants swam across, " it remarked.

Regarding 5, 000 migrants and asylum seekers, including 1, 200 minors, still remain in Ceuta, more than a month after the mass crossing, according to the Spanish administration. Local authorities cite a higher figure of up to 10, 000 residents. The population of Cuba is regarding 84, 000 residents.

Notably, the opposition, meanwhile, has accused the administration of failing to act despite having been alerted.

"The administration knew everything that was happening. They had the information. They are directly responsible for the invasion of Ceuta, " Ester Munoz, spokeswoman for the right-wing Popular Party in parliament, remarked to journalists.

For now, spain's spy agency warned of mass crossings into Ceuta before border crisis remains the part of the story worth watching, and further updates are likely as more details are confirmed.