Navarre takes first migrant minors from Ceuta as Spain begins mainland relocations

Bilateral agreement launches mainland transfers

Navarre received the first unaccompanied migrant minors from Ceuta on 10 September 2026, marking the initial transfers to mainland Spain following the late July border crossing. Regional president María Chivite announced that Navarre agreed to take five Moroccan girls under a bilateral arrangement with the Ministry of Youth and Children. The agreement, negotiated with youth minister Sira Rego, operated outside Article 35 of the Immigration Law to accelerate placements for vulnerable children. Two girls arrived in Navarre on Thursday evening, with the remaining three scheduled to arrive on 11 September 2026. Alongside the intake, the regional administration confirmed plans to send roughly 600 vaccines to Ceuta to support local health services.

“Five minor girls are about to arrive in Navarre from Ceuta, because this government helps Ceuta.”

Scale of arrivals and conditions in Ceuta

The relocation follows the entry of over 70,000 migrants into Ceuta across the Moroccan border on 30 and 31 July 2026. Declassified Spanish intelligence files released on 9 September 2026 noted that authorities had detected internal communications planning border incursions on the night of 29 July 2026. While most adults were returned to Morocco, roughly 5,000 migrants remained in the autonomous city as of 10 September 2026. Local authorities have identified approximately 2,000 unaccompanied minors among the population, including 700 girls facing heightened risks of trafficking and abuse. Local facilities face capacity limits, with over 1,500 children requiring local school placements in Ceuta.

National quota commitments and local capacity

The central government committed to evacuating 500 unaccompanied minors to mainland regions, but transfers have moved slowly across the country. The five girls moving to Navarre represent less than 0.5% of the total number of unaccompanied children identified in the enclave. Non-governmental organizations and child protection agencies agreed to manage the care of vulnerable minors under an emergency plan without transferring legal guardianship to regional governments. Administrative officials across involved departments have not established a firm calendar for subsequent relocations to other autonomous communities.

Identified in Ceuta2,000

Identified girls700

Government relocation pledge500

Transferred to Navarre5

Identified in Ceuta

2000 minors

Identified girls

700 minors

Government relocation pledge

500 minors

Transferred to Navarre

5 minors

Data from the article text

Political dispute across Spanish regions

The transfer intensified political disagreements between the central government and regional administrations governed by the conservative Partido Popular (PP) and Vox, which have resisted accepting assigned minors. Youth minister Sira Rego criticized regional executives for blocking transfers and called on other administrations to replicate the Navarre arrangement.

“If Navarre can take in girls and this reception is shown to be viable, it must also be viable and possible for the autonomous communities of the Partido Popular.”

In the Navarre regional parliament, opposition leader Javier Esparza of Union of the People of Navarre (UPN) criticized Chivite for acting as a delegate of Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez and accused the central administration of failing to anticipate the July arrivals. Chivite defended the reception as a legal and humanitarian duty, while acknowledging that the central government should have reacted with greater speed.