Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said on Monday that the Moroccan authorities had no responsibility for the sudden influx of migrants into the Spanish enclave of Ceuta a month ago, pledging to provide additional aid worth 168 million euros to confront the economic repercussions of the crisis. Sanchez accused the far right and networks linked to Israel and Russia of spreading disinformation. While Italy announced the extension of the suspension of the Schengen Agreement with Spain “due to the continuing factors” that called for taking this “exceptional” measure.

Published on: 08/31/2026 - 12:28 Last updated: 09/01/2026 - 09:01

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Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said on Monday to Cadena Ser radio that the Moroccan authorities bear no responsibility for the sudden influx of migrants from Moroccan territory to the Spanish enclave of Ceuta a month ago, denouncing false information from the extreme right and networks linked to Israel and Russia.

Israel responded to Sanchez's statements, accusing him of "lying." While Italy announced on Monday the extension of the suspension of the Schengen Agreement with Spain for an additional 15 days, which has been in force since the beginning of August, following the influx of migrants to Ceuta.

A month ago, about 70,000 migrants, walking or swimming, crossed the border between Morocco and the Spanish enclave of Ceuta, located in North Africa. The majority of them were returned, but about 5,000 migrants remain today in Ceuta, including about 1,200 unaccompanied minors, according to what Sanchez said Monday on Cadena Ser radio, while local authorities speak of 10,000 migrants who are still in the Spanish enclave.

According to official figures, at least 91 people died in the incident, 80 from the Spanish side and 11 from the Moroccan side. However, Moroccan non-governmental organizations report that at least 141 people have been killed and dozens are missing.

Read alsoEgyptians, Yemenis, Iraqis, sub-Saharan Africans... The fate of migrants in Ceuta hangs at the gate of the West

An ongoing investigation and Morocco's denial of responsibility

The Prime Minister stressed in his statements, “We will continue to investigate what happened,” ruling out any responsibility of the Moroccan authorities. He stated, "No intelligence service with which the Spanish government usually cooperates has shown the slightest doubt or even hinted at any doubt about the involvement of the Moroccan authorities in one way or another."

He added: "It must be realized that this crisis can only be resolved with cooperation and not with suspicion of Morocco," pledging additional aid worth 168 million euros to the Ceuta enclave to confront the economic repercussions of the influx of migrants.

Read also: When the dream of immigration turns into a tragedy... Moroccan families search for their missing children in Ceuta

Misinformation from the far right, Russia and Israel

“What we know so far is that a decree issued by the Supreme Court last July 8 was distorted and spread on social networks through rumors and misleading information, as well as by criminal organizations that traffic in human beings,” Sanchez said.

Some information circulated stated that if a swimmer reaches Ceuta, return to Morocco becomes impossible, which is not true, as the Spanish Prime Minister confirmed.

“We also acknowledge the structural disparity that makes the borders of the Autonomous City of Ceuta and the Autonomous City of Melilla probably the most complex in the world, because the disparity in opportunities and income per capita between one side and the other is enormous,” Sanchez said.

He pointed out, "After July 30 and 31, rumors and misleading information spread on social media networks related to both Russia and Israel, in addition to an international trend of the extreme right that always uses immigration to attack Spain and also attack Europe and stir up division."

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For his part, Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar wrote on the X platform, “In his interview with Cadena Ser Radio today, he lied again, astonishingly accusing Israel of spreading misleading information regarding the events in Ceuta. This is a shameless lie.”

Italy and Spain extend mutual border measures

In Italy, the Ministry of the Interior said in a statement that its decision to extend the suspension of the Schengen Agreement with Spain for a period of 15 days “was taken based on the assessment conducted by the Migration and Border Security Analysis Committee, and in view of the continuation of the factors that originally called for the re-imposition of this exceptional measure on August 1” for a month.

Rome also explained that the decision was taken “taking into account the initiatives taken by Spain so far in cooperation with the European Union, to allow the situation to return to normal in the region soon.”

On the other hand, Spain announced that it would continue examining travelers arriving from Italy by air and sea for another 15 days, thus prolonging the mutual restrictions that undermined the Schengen area, which allows visa-free travel between European Union countries.

Additional aid for Ceuta

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said Monday that his country will allocate an additional amount of 168 million euros ($195 million) to revitalize the economy of Ceuta, the North African enclave that was rocked by a mass influx of more than 72,000 migrants at the end of last month.

He added in an interview with Cadena SER radio station that this amount is equivalent to eight percent of Ceuta's gross domestic product.

France 24/Agencies

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