Spain PM Blames Traffickers as 60,000 Migrants Storm Ceuta from Morocco

Around 60,000 migrants crossed from Morocco into the Spanish enclave of Ceuta in a matter of days, prompting a major political and humanitarian crisis on Europe's southern border. Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez blamed organised human trafficking networks for orchestrating the mass crossing, calling it an attack on Spain's territorial integrity.

Spain Acts to Restore Order

Spanish authorities deployed additional border security personnel to Ceuta and began processing the arrivals. Officials said most migrants had returned to Morocco by Friday evening, but the sheer scale of the crossing — one of the largest ever recorded at the EU's external border — sent shockwaves through European capitals.

Italy responded to the crisis by announcing it was suspending its Schengen agreement on free movement with Spain, a move that underscores growing tensions within the European Union over migration management.

European Divisions on Migration Policy

The Ceuta crisis has reignited debates across the EU about the adequacy of the bloc's external border controls and the distribution of responsibility among member states for managing migration flows. Several governments called for emergency EU-level discussions, while others criticised Spain for allegedly failing to prevent such large-scale crossings.

Morocco, which has at times co-operated with Spain on border management and at other times eased restrictions as a form of diplomatic pressure, has not issued an official statement on the latest crossing.