{"id":5302,"date":"2026-08-03T13:56:04","date_gmt":"2026-08-03T12:56:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/zawaya24.com\/en\/?p=5302"},"modified":"2026-08-03T13:56:04","modified_gmt":"2026-08-03T12:56:04","slug":"morocco-says-digital-misinformation-fueled-ceuta-crossing-attempts","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/zawaya24.com\/en\/morocco-says-digital-misinformation-fueled-ceuta-crossing-attempts\/","title":{"rendered":"Morocco says digital misinformation fueled Ceuta crossing attempts"},"content":{"rendered":"

Morocco\u2019s Ministry of the Interior said recent Ceuta crossing attempts<\/strong> were driven by coordinated misinformation campaigns, human trafficking networks, and false narratives spread through digital platforms rather than by spontaneous migration movements.<\/p>\n

According to ministry spokesperson Rachid El Khalti, authorities concluded that the events resulted from several interconnected factors. These included the deliberate misuse of social media, the circulation of misleading information, the activities of criminal trafficking networks, and the misunderstanding of legal and administrative developments that led many migrants to believe they could reach Europe easily and avoid legal consequences.<\/p>\n

The statement follows large-scale migration attempts toward the Spanish enclaves of Ceuta and Melilla, which attracted international attention after videos circulated widely on social media.<\/p>\n

Reports cited by the ministry indicated that anonymous TikTok accounts encouraged mainly young people to attempt the crossings. The accounts allegedly claimed that Spain’s borders were effectively open, shared Google Maps images, and provided information about where to obtain equipment that could facilitate the journey.<\/p>\n

Moroccan authorities said they responded with what they described as a proactive and comprehensive strategy. The measures included early monitoring of online activity and emerging indicators, raising security alert levels, strengthening coordination among security services and territorial authorities, and increasing surveillance on land and at sea.<\/p>\n

Officials said these actions enabled authorities to regain control of the situation, protect lives, maintain public order, secure the borders, and enforce the law while respecting the principle of proportionality.<\/p>\n

The ministry also rejected migration figures circulating in some media outlets. Based on official monitoring systems deployed at departure points, authorities estimated that approximately 40,000 people attempted to reach Ceuta, while around 1,135 headed toward Melilla.<\/p>\n

Officials said everyone who successfully entered Melilla was immediately returned under existing cooperation mechanisms between Morocco and Spain.<\/p>\n

The ministry stressed that these figures were based on approved statistical and field monitoring systems and should be regarded as the official reference, unlike estimates that lack verified evidence.<\/p>\n

Authorities also argued that a ruling issued by the Spanish Supreme Court on July 8 concerning migrants arriving by sea was widely misinterpreted and later exploited by human trafficking networks.<\/p>\n

According to the ministry, this misunderstanding encouraged many prospective migrants to believe that swimming offered a greater chance of avoiding immediate return. Officials added that the short distance between the Moroccan and Spanish shores, less than 70 meters in some areas, together with relatively shallow waters, created a false perception that the crossing could be completed safely.<\/p>\n

Morocco reported one accidental death caused by a fall near Ceuta and ten drowning deaths during the migration attempts. The ministry said it continues to verify reports from the Spanish side regarding additional fatalities through official bilateral cooperation channels to establish the identities, nationalities, and exact number of victims.<\/p>\n

Spanish authorities have reported significantly higher casualty figures than those confirmed by Morocco.<\/p>\n

An official investigation remains underway to determine responsibilities and examine all incidents linked to the crossings. Authorities said legal action will follow where appropriate.<\/p>\n

The ministry reaffirmed Morocco’s commitment to international cooperation against irregular migration and human trafficking, while stressing that migration management requires shared responsibility, stronger international solidarity, and coordinated action between countries.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Morocco\u2019s Ministry of the Interior said recent Ceuta crossing attempts were driven by coordinated misinformation…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":5303,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[4866,4552,264,273],"class_list":["post-5302","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-politics","tag-human-trafficking","tag-irregular-migration","tag-morocco","tag-spain"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/zawaya24.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5302","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/zawaya24.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/zawaya24.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zawaya24.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zawaya24.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5302"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/zawaya24.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5302\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5304,"href":"https:\/\/zawaya24.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5302\/revisions\/5304"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zawaya24.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/5303"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/zawaya24.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5302"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zawaya24.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5302"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zawaya24.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5302"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}