Spain’s Defense Minister, Margarita Robles, informed Congress on Tuesday that a recent Supreme Court decision concerning repatriations at the Sebta border had indeed created a “pull factor.” This development, she explained, significantly contributed to the large-scale arrival of migrants observed on July 30 and 31.
To substantiate her explanation, Minister Robles presented findings from a Spanish Defense Staff report. This report outlines a three-phase escalation of migrant mobilization. The initial phase, termed “concentrated migration,” commenced after the Supreme Court’s ruling was published on July 8. This judicial decision stipulated that individuals who reached the city by swimming could not be immediately returned via maritime routes.
Following this date, hundreds of individuals began attempting to cross, with their numbers progressively increasing to several thousands. The minister described this as a “pull effect fueled by a self-serving interpretation of the ruling,” which gained widespread traction across social media platforms.
Adding to this initial message, another narrative emerged, portraying Morocco’s Fête du Trône as an opportune moment to cross the border. According to Robles’ account, various Facebook groups propagated the notion that fewer police personnel would be stationed on the Moroccan side due to the national celebrations.
A “self-organized” mobilization on social media
The minister asserted that what was characterized as a “massive assault” was not the result of centralized organization but rather a form of “self-organization” among the migrants themselves. They reportedly converged on the border, influenced by a “message of opportunity” and posts suggesting an “alleged absence of obstacles” for entering Sebta.
The perspective presented by the Defense Ministry thus places social media at the core of this mobilization. Robles indicated that the rapid dissemination of these messages prevented security forces from “reacting in time” when thousands of crossing attempts simultaneously escalated.
Robles further affirmed the material impossibility of “preventing, through the use of force, such surges of hundreds or thousands of people.” She warned that any intervention of this nature would have led to tragic outcomes. “The number of fatalities would have been incalculable,” she stated during her testimony before the Defense Committee.
Minister Robles’ remarks align with explanations provided by Morocco as early as August 2. At that time, Morocco’s Interior Ministry had detailed a proactive and comprehensive response by authorities. This strategy involved early detection of signals, heightened vigilance, mobilization of security services, and intensified land and maritime surveillance. This coordinated effort successfully brought the situation under control, protected human lives, maintained public order, and secured borders, all while adhering to legal principles and proportionality. Rabat had also attributed these crossing attempts to the spread of misleading information on social media, human trafficking networks, and an erroneous understanding of Spanish judicial decisions.
A unified command for the crisis
Margarita Robles’ hearing marks the beginning of a week during which eight ministers are scheduled to report to Congress on the Spanish government’s response to a crisis ignited 26 days prior by the entry of approximately 80,000 migrants.
Concurrently, Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez chaired the inaugural meeting of the National Security Council dedicated to the Sebta situation on Tuesday. Government vice-presidents, several ministers, key state security officials, and Juan Jesús Vivas, who participated remotely, were all present at the gathering.
This meeting served to formalize the establishment of a unified command tasked with managing the crisis. Coordination responsibilities will be entrusted to the Minister of Territorial Policy, Ángel Víctor Torres, who will lead a committee comprising Juan Jesús Vivas, the government delegate, representatives from the National Intelligence Center, and various implicated ministries.
