PP demands immediate return of all immigrants who entered Ceuta, accuses government of inaction
After an estimated 50,000 immigrants crossed from Morocco into Ceuta on Thursday, the opposition PP demands that all be returned immediately, including minors, and accuses Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez of prior knowledge and inaction.
Mass entry and official response
On Thursday, July 30, an estimated 50,000 immigrants crossed from Morocco into the Spanish enclave of Ceuta, a city of about 90,000 residents. The government has asked Spain's autonomous communities to take in unaccompanied minors because Ceuta's reception facilities are saturated. The opposition Partido Popular (PP) says the real number of entrants is higher, and its secretary general, Miguel Tellado, spent Sunday in Ceuta insisting the city has not returned to normal.
PP accusations of prior knowledge
Tellado said the government had intelligence about the impending influx but did not act. Ceuta president Juan Jesús Vivas (PP) had alerted authorities on Monday, July 27. Tellado called it difficult to believe that intelligence services did not detect the movement of what he described as a human tide. He demanded explanations from Defence Minister Margarita Robles for not ordering an immediate army deployment.
El Gobierno tenía la información y el Gobierno no actuó.
Demands for immediate return
Tellado insisted that all who entered illegally must be returned to Morocco immediately, including minors. He rejected the government's request for regional help, calling it absurd that the government caused the problem and now wants others to fix it. He said the event was not a migration crisis but a foreign policy and security crisis, and an attack on Spain's territorial integrity.
Esto no ha sido una crisis migratoria, esto ha sido un ataque a la integridad territorial de España.
Ceuta's current situation
Tellado, who was in Ceuta on Sunday, said many immigrants are leaving slowly but thousands remain hidden in the streets. He said residents feel fear and worry because the situation could repeat at any moment. He mocked Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez for going to La Mareta with his Spotify playlist while Ceuta remains unprotected.
Ceuta es una ciudad herida. Esto no puede ocurrir en la España del 2026. Es inadmisible e indignante.
Political context
PP leader Alberto Núñez Feijóo also visited Ceuta and met with Guardia Civil and police unions. Tellado said the PP would form a government with the far-right Vox party without embarrassment if needed, citing shared centre-right ideology and successful regional coalitions. The PP's stance on the Ceuta crisis is likely to sharpen the political debate ahead of any future national election.
