Spain Intelligence Warned of Ceuta Migrant Surge

Spain's national intelligence agency issued warnings about potential mass migrant crossings into the Spanish exclave of Ceuta a day before tens of thousands of people surged across the border in late July 2026. Declassified documents released by the government reveal that the National Intelligence Center (CNI) alerted both Spanish authorities and Moroccan intelligence services on July 29 about social media calls for an assault on the border fence and by sea. These warnings indicated that online groups were organizing attempts to enter Ceuta, citing two such groups with a combined total of 180,000 followers. The National Centre for Immigration and Borders (CENIF) also issued alerts on the same day, classifying the risk of entry by swimming as high and by fence or sea as medium. The timing of the planned crossings coincided with Morocco's Throne Day celebrations on July 30, a detail noted in the intelligence advisories. Despite these alerts, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez stated that the warnings did not reveal the eventual scale, nature, or probability of the crisis that unfolded on July 30 and 31, when more than 70,000 people arrived in Ceuta.