No one anticipated that a small city, spanning merely 19 square kilometers, would become the focal point of a humanitarian and diplomatic crisis, sending ripples throughout southern Europe.

Within hours on Thursday, Ceuta witnessed an influx of thousands of migrants from Moroccan territory, marking the most significant mass crossing the city has experienced since the 2021 crisis.

Local authorities in Ceuta reported that approximately 60,000 migrants had entered the city. The human toll was also severe, with the Spanish Interior Ministry confirming 34 deaths by Friday afternoon.

Videos captured on Ceuta’s Tarajal beach revealed the chaotic scenes accompanying these crossings, as large crowds surged between the dike and the roads bordering the frontier area.

While most new arrivals were young individuals, footage also showed women with children and entire families undertaking a perilous journey fraught with risks of drowning and exhaustion.

How did official responses and public opinion in Morocco, and more broadly across North Africa, react to these unfolding events? We examine the regional perspectives.

Morocco’s sovereignty claims reignited by Ceuta events

The developments in Ceuta on Thursday brought renewed focus to one of the most sensitive issues in Moroccan-Spanish relations: the sovereignty over Ceuta and Melilla. Rabat has historically considered these cities part of its territory since gaining independence from France and Spain in 1956.

The recent crisis coincided with Morocco’s Throne Day celebrations, commemorating the king’s accession and the renewal of allegiance between the kingdom and its people.

Hespress, a widely read Moroccan news outlet, stated that “the waves of incursions into Ceuta and subsequent attempts to cross into Melilla have brought the debate on the social and economic situation in the border areas of the two enclaves back to the forefront.”

The outlet further commented that “what occurred once again highlights the connection between these cities and their Moroccan surroundings, as well as the complexities of their historical and sovereignty status.”

Hespress reported that the crisis compelled Ceuta’s local authorities to request intervention from the central government in Madrid. Madrid promptly contacted Moroccan officials to discuss containment strategies, eventually agreeing to repatriate those who had managed to enter the city.

Citing Yahya Yahya, president of the national committee for the reintegration of Ceuta, Melilla, and adjacent islands, Hespress conveyed that the handling of events by Ceuta’s authorities exposed “the fragility of the Spanish presence in the region.” Yahya Yahya considered the Ceuta government leader’s request for military deployment a “political failure.”

Algeria’s critical stance on the crisis

Meanwhile, Algiers’ desire to gain political leverage against Rabat, coupled with the long-standing animosity between the two neighboring nations, heavily influenced Algeria’s public position on the Ceuta events.

The news portal Tout sur l’Algérie characterized the situation as a “massive flight of Moroccans,” asserting that Rabat, labeled as “Europe’s spoiled child,” had once again weaponized the “migratory bomb” against Madrid.

Tout sur l’Algérie contended that European leaders preferred to direct their criticism towards Spain rather than addressing what it perceived as the primary source of this human tide of migrants. It specifically pointed to Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s call for suspending Spain’s Schengen area membership following the incidents.

This private media outlet went further, accusing Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani of seeking to curry favor with Morocco in this matter, citing his close relationship with the royal palace.

The site additionally alleged that Moroccan security forces allowed crowds of migrants to enter Ceuta without intervention, suggesting that Rabat is either incapable of controlling its borders or is deliberately using migration as a tool against its Spanish neighbor.

It also highlighted the reaction of the French right and far-right to the Ceuta events, noting that they “overwhelmed Spain with reproaches without uttering a single word about Morocco.”

Algerian public television echoed this critical view of Rabat, suggesting that the events amounted to a “massive flight” reflecting the challenging economic and social conditions within Morocco.

Algeria itself faces a youth unemployment rate of around 31%. Its government has drawn criticism for suppressing the Hirak protest movement, which mobilized millions between 2019 and 2021, and for employing criminal prosecutions to silence journalists, activists, and dissidents.

Unsurprisingly, politics permeated the social media discussions among Algerian internet users.

Platforms were inundated with sarcastic comments, one of which humorously rebranded Morocco as “Switzerland” and emphatically stated that Ceuta belongs to Spain.

A Moroccan internet user retorted that among the migrants fleeing to Spain were also Algerians, themselves seeking an escape from the harsh realities of their own country.

Another user shared a video depicting individuals of various nationalities seeking a better life away from their homelands, emphasizing that factors driving migration transcend national affiliation.

A separate video, posted by a Moroccan account, brought attention to irregular migration from Algeria and the perceived media silence surrounding it.

Tunisia: “only the king remains”

In Tunisia, social media users shared videos of the massive crossing into Ceuta, often accompanied by humorous commentary.

Some users quipped, “Only the king remains,” alluding to the significant number of people who departed Morocco in just a few hours.

Conversely, others believed these images starkly exposed the profound social and economic crisis affecting a large segment of North African youth. They argued that rising unemployment compels individuals to risk their lives to reach Europe.

Tunisia is grappling with severe structural economic challenges. Youth unemployment reached 38% in 2025, marking the highest rate among the three Maghreb countries.

The nation has also become a significant source of irregular migration to Europe, with Tunisian nationals now among the primary groups crossing the Mediterranean to Italy, adding an ironic layer to Tunisian social media comments regarding the Ceuta crossing.

President Kaïs Saïed consolidated most executive power in July 2021, dissolved parliament, and in 2022 enacted a new constitution that human rights organizations describe as dismantling the achievements of the 2011 revolution.

Understanding Ceuta and Melilla: historical context

Spain maintains two enclaves bordering northern Morocco: Ceuta and Melilla.

Ceuta was captured by the Portuguese in 1415 and remained under Portuguese control for nearly two centuries before transitioning to Spanish rule in 1668, as stipulated by the Treaty of Lisbon signed that same year.

Melilla came under the authority of the Spanish crown in the late 15th century when the Spanish seized it in 1497, five years after the fall of Granada, the last stronghold of Islamic presence on the Iberian Peninsula.

In 1995, Madrid granted both cities autonomous status, aligning them with other Spanish regions that operate under a similar decentralized system.

Morocco continues to regard Ceuta and Melilla as occupied territories, referring to them as “the two enclaves,” and has long demanded that this issue be resolved through dialogue with Spain.

Madrid, for its part, consistently reaffirms its sovereignty over these two cities, which have become key transit points for smuggling and irregular migration into Europe via Spain.

This reality prompted Spanish authorities in 1995 to erect an 8.4-kilometer-long fence separating Ceuta from Moroccan territory. In some sections, it reaches 10 meters in height and is equipped with barbed wire, electronic sensors, and loudspeakers to deter intrusion attempts.

Another border barrier was constructed between Melilla and Morocco in the mid-1990s. This 12-kilometer-long fence, approximately two meters high, features similar electronic equipment to prevent migrants from illegally entering the city.

The 2021 crisis, during which approximately 8,000 people crossed the border in a matter of days, was largely attributed to a diplomatic spat between Madrid and Rabat. This occurred after Spain permitted Brahim Ghali, leader of the Western Sahara’s Polisario Front, to receive medical treatment on its soil. Morocco denied any involvement in that crisis at the time.