Spanish Civil Guard Warns of Possible New Illegal Migrant Invasion of Ceuta

Spain’s Civil Guard is investigating a possible new invasion of Ceuta by illegal migrants that could materialize the coming days, a report states.

The Spanish newspaper ABC reports it obtained a copy of a preliminary Civil Guard assessment warning on a possible new migrant invasion of Ceuta on Saturday, August 15.

According to ABC, the Spanish Civil Guard affirmed in its analysis that the “risk of materialization” of a new invasion event on August 15 “is real, but its magnitude is uncertain.”

The Spanish Civil Guard reportedly warned that, although it is not a final conclusion, the analysis indicates that a call to action for the mentioned day is “genuine,” “not an isolated incident,” and reaches a “broad potential audience.”

The worrisome conclusion, the newspaper explained, stems from a review of thousands of posts on Facebook, Instagram, and the messaging platform WhatsApp calling for a new mass swarm of Ceuta on that day.

In many of these messages, the term “Harraga Marruecos” is reportedly featured. The term, which combines the Maghrebi Arabic dialect with the Spanish word for Morocco, roughly translates to “Those who burn Morocco” and is used to refer to Moroccan illegal migrants who attempt to cross into European Union borders.

“Within this digital web, there were invitations to join groups with over a thousand users, featuring calls for mass mobilization and phrases such as ‘our last chance’ and ‘everything will be revealed that day,’ referring to the aforementioned [August] fifteenth,” ABC wrote.

The analysis reportedly details that such messaging campaigns have an estimated reach of nearly half a million people — noting that “the robust signal is not the raw number” but rather, the recurring details contained in the messages such as dates, geographical references, logistical conversations, and their appearance on groups already focused on migration.”

Indeed, as the Spanish Civil Guard analysis reportedly states, local outlets have denounced this week the proliferation of multiple messages on social media and messaging platforms calling for a new migrant swarm of Ceuta for August 15. The newspaper El País reports that it had successfully gained access to five such Facebook groups that collectively totaled close to 400,000 users where messages calling for a new event on August 15 could be found.

Per ABC, the Spanish Civil Guard affirmed that it has failed to identify the original sources of the messages or any semblance of a chain of command, but noted that there is elements pointing to “signs of basic decentralized operational coordination.”

Additionally, the Civil Guard reportedly stated that there is “insufficient evidence” to attribute the calls to the government of Morocco. On the other hand, the Civil Guard affirmed that the involvement of human trafficking rings — which both the Spanish and Moroccan governments have accused of fueling the Ceuta invasion — is “plausible” but “unproven as the sole cause,” based on the information reviewed by the law enforcement agency.

The warning espoused by the Spanish Civil Guard comes as the Spanish enclave of Ceuta is still reeling from the chaotic events of last week, when roughly 72,000 illegal migrants flooded Ceuta, a city with about 87,000 inhabitants.

This week, Spanish Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska claimed that his office received no prior reports from the nation’s intelligence institutions warning of last week’s massive illegal migrant invasion of Ceuta. Sources from the Spanish National Intelligence Centre (CNI) denied the Minister’s claims over the weekend, affirming to local outlets that reports were allegedly sent to the Interior Minister warning of the then-incoming invasion.

According to Spain’s socialist government, “over 70,000” of the migrants that swarmed Ceuta last week have allegedly left the city as of this week. Ceuta’s local government has reportedly acknowledged that “some 1,100” unaccompanied minor migrants still remain in the city.