MADRID, 01 Sept. - (ANA) - Spain's Pedro Sanchez says Russian and Israeli networks helped spread disinformation over the deadly migrant crisis in Ceuta, while denying Moroccan involvement.

 

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez has accused networks linked to Russia and Israel of spreading disinformation during last month's deadly migrant crisis in Ceuta. 

 

Citing research by the European Union's foreign service, Sanchez claimed it was “evident” that the two countries had used the crisis to incite against the Spanish government, as they were at odds with Madrid over its positions on the wars in Ukraine and Gaza.

 

He also ruled out any responsibility on the part of the Moroccan authorities for the sudden influx of migrants into the Spanish territory.

 

Spanish opposition parties have accused Rabat of deliberately allowing the mass crossing, an allegation Morocco has denied. 

 

“After July 30 and 31, rumours and disinformation spread on social networks linked to Russia and Israel, and to an ultra-right international that always uses migration to attack both Spain and Europe and divide it,” Sanchez told Spain's Cadena SER radio on Monday. 

 

“No intelligence service with which the Spanish government normally cooperates” had suggested “any … involvement in one way or another of the Moroccan authorities”, he added. 

 

More than 72,000 migrants crossed from Morocco into the Spanish-controlled city of Ceuta between 30 and 31 July in an unprecedented surge at one of the European Union's only two land borders with Africa. 

 

The border rush prompted alarm across the bloc- with at least 100 people died in the attempt, according to Ceuta's local authorities. 

 

Thousands have since remained in the enclave, with many currently living rough on the streets. However, the vast majority returned to Morocco within hours of the crisis breaking out. 

 

Sanchez said on Monday that disinformation had been circulating online during the influx, including through networks linked to human trafficking groups. 

 

Spanish authorities have said videos shared on Instagram, TikTok and other social media platforms contained misleading claims that migrants reaching Ceuta by sea would be allowed to remain in Spain, encouraging thousands to attempt the crossing. 

 

Israeli officials, including Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar, have since rejected the allegations.

 

In a post on X responding to Sanchez's comments, Sa'ar said Sanchez was "lying shamelessly" by accusing Israel of disseminating misleading information about Ceuta, and described the allegation as an attempt to distract from domestic policy failures. 

 

Marc Owen Jones, a disinformation expert and associate professor of media analytics at Northwestern University in Qatar, told The New Arab that "certain networks were amplifying disinformation around Ceuta", warning that anti-immigrant discourse was being amplified and "using Ceuta opportunistically". 

 

He added: "At the moment this particular network remains unattributed, but it forms part of a long-running campaign to promote anti-immigrant and anti-Muslim sentiment in Europe." 

 

"We know previously that networks have been disrupted that have been attributed to Russia and Israel - who have promoted the same narratives in Europe." 

 

Previous incidents, including alleged pro-Russian hacking that resulted in cyberattacks against Spain and other NATO countries over their support for Ukraine in its war with Russia, as well as allegations that Israeli spyware company NSO Group's Pegasus spyware was used to target ministers' phones, have further fuelled questions about foreign influence operations. 

 

"It is useful to remember that Russia has been using such narratives to disrupt societal harmony in Europe, while Israel is trying to position itself as a bulwark against the 'barbaric Muslim Arabs'," Jones told The New Arab. 

 

"For Israel, to do this it benefits from exaggerating the threat of Muslim immigration." 

 

The Ceuta crisis has triggered near-daily protests by locals over the Spanish government's handling of the situation, alongside sporadic attacks on a makeshift migrant camp at El Trampolin beach, according to police reports. 

 

Police also arrested three Moroccan citizens on Sunday for allegedly throwing bottles containing corrosive liquids at an army patrol in Ceuta, news agency EFE reported, citing police sources. No one was injured in the incident, the report added.   - (ANA) -

 

AB/ANA/01 September 2026 - - -