Spain fires national security press officer after she published the 49,000 figure for the Ceuta migrant surge

The dismissal

The Spanish government has summarily dismissed the civil servant responsible for communications at the Department of National Security (DSN), a body attached to the Prime Minister's office. The dismissal was communicated by telephone on Friday 31 July while the official was on leave. According to El País, the decision was taken after she published an alert on the DSN website stating that an estimated 49,000 migrants had entered Ceuta irregularly in the preceding 24 hours. The alert was removed from the site shortly afterwards, and the official was placed in a status of "available without assignment," which substantially reduces her salary. She had held the post since 2018 and originally came from the Ministry of Defence.

What the alert said

The alert, which cited Interior Ministry sources, described the entry as the largest migration crisis recorded in the city since May 2021. It noted that the crossings occurred via the Tarajal breakwater and beach, and referenced the recovery of 19 bodies at sea. The text also reported that thousands of people were massed on the Moroccan side of the border and that Moroccan security forces had begun using riot-control equipment to disperse crowds in Castillejos. The alert highlighted that smuggling networks were exploiting a recent Supreme Court ruling to encourage departures, and recalled the joint commitment of Madrid and Rabat to accelerate returns.

In the last 24 hours, it is estimated that more than 49,000 immigrants have entered Ceuta irregularly via the breakwater and the beach of Tarajal, representing the largest migration crisis recorded in the city since May 2021.

Internal reaction

The publication caused deep unease within the government. Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska contacted the head of the Prime Minister's cabinet, Diego Rubio, after the alert appeared. According to La Razón, the Interior Ministry had not yet informed the media because it considered the moment premature, as no full assessment of the situation or its scope had been completed. Rubio relayed the dismissal decision by phone. ABC reports that the order was decided by General Loreto Gutiérrez, head of the DSN, and took effect from 1 August. The official was permitted only to return to her office to collect her personal effects.

An unusual procedure

Several sources consulted by Spanish media describe the immediate dismissal as almost without precedent in the Prime Minister's office. The normal practice when a civil servant posted to the Presidency ceases their functions is to negotiate the terms of their return to their home ministry. In this case, neither the Ministry of Defence had been formally notified of the dismissal, nor was any process opened to organise her reincorporation there. El Confidencial notes that the DSN director, Loreto Gutiérrez, told the official the decision came from "higher up."

Silence since Friday

Since the official's departure on 31 July, the DSN website has not been updated, despite the ongoing migration crisis in Ceuta. The alert was the first official recognition of the scale of the influx, though unofficial estimates later rose above 60,000 entries. The Interior Ministry subsequently stated that around 50,000 people were calculated to have crossed the border, a figure that was later increased. The rapid dissemination of the 49,000 figure by national and international news agencies, including Reuters before 10 a.m. on Friday, drew the attention of many observers.