The chief of staff of the Ceuta delegation who spoke with the CNI resigns

MadridFirst resignation after the declassification of the documents on the Ceuta crisis. According to sources from the Spanish government confirming to ARA, the chief of staff to the government delegate in the autonomous city, Carlos Sanz, has resigned after it became known that he spoke with the CNI the day before the massive entry of immigrants into Ceuta. Messages in which he was warned of massive calls to cross the border. According to the Ceuta government delegate, Miguel Ángel Pérez Triano, Sanz did not inform him of this conversation with the Spanish intelligence services and has ruled out leaving his post. In a statement following Sanz's resignation, the government delegation insisted that it "knew nothing" about the messages alerting of a massive arrival of migrants.

"What is happening leaves the [Spanish] government in a very bad position," reacted the president of Ceuta, the Popular Party's Juan Jesús Vivas, who questioned that the government delegate knew nothing about the communication from the CNI. In any case, in a press conference, Vivas pointed higher up, towards Moncloa, and argued that "the responsibilities cannot be limited exclusively to the government delegate because he also lacked the capacity to act with the energy, firmness, and diligence that the case required." According to Vivas, days before the massive entry, he called Moncloa to alert them, but the response was to ignore his warnings. The Ceuta president's version is that they told him to stay calm and not call again because "they were being very annoying."

And what was said in Sanz's conversation with the CNI? In the declassified messages, it can be seen how, via WhatsApp, a CNI agent warned Sanz that there was a call with a potential reach of 180,000 people, but according to Pérez Triano, this information was not escalated. There was also a phone call whose content has not been disclosed. However, the Ceuta delegate and the Spanish government have asserted that the CNI's notice was not a formal alert and that the intelligence services limited themselves to relaying calls that were already known without warning of the magnitude of what could happen.

Thus, they reaffirm that there was not enough information to prevent the massive entry of immigrants, despite several informative notes from the security forces speaking of an increase in entries by sea in Ceuta –following the Supreme Court ruling that rejected summary returns on July 8– and of various calls on social networks to cross the border on Morocco's Throne Day.

Clash between Morocco and the PP

Precisely this Thursday, the Alawite regime wanted to have its say after all political groups except the PSOE have been pointing to it as an active or passive author of the Ceuta crisis. Faced with the accusations, the Moroccan Foreign Ministry warned that it "will not accept being the scapegoat" in the political battle in Spain and regretted that Spanish political parties "with a long history" have "fallen into an irrational and populist escalation," in allusion to the PP. This Friday, the Popular Party responded with a statement in which they maintain a harsh tone against the regime of Mohammed VI. They reiterate that the Ceuta crisis is an "invasion" and a "serious violation of the territorial integrity of Spain and Europe," a "hybrid attack with an instrumentalization of irregular immigration," and they continue to point to Morocco as responsible "by action or omission."

The Popular Party insists that they "will defend the interests" of the State and the integrity of its borders with "firmness": "There is nothing above the defense of Spain," they declare. In this context, Alberto Núñez Feijóo will meet next Thursday with the European Commissioner for Migration, Magnus Brunner, in Madrid. For now, the reports declassified by the Spanish government do not speak of Morocco as a planning agent of the crisis, but several notes from security forces do highlight a "passive" attitude of the security forces on July 30th at the border, where there were fewer personnel due to the Throne Day –the celebration that commemorates the enthronement of Mohammed VI in 1999–. Vivas has insisted on the PP's position and has accused Morocco of having a policy of "harassment" against the autonomous city.

Fire in immigrant shacks

At the same time, the humanitarian crisis is worsening on the streets. A fire this morning in a warehouse in the El Tarajal industrial estate has destroyed 42 shacks where some of the immigrants who entered Ceuta irregularly on July 30th and 31st were sleeping.

It was the local residents who raised the alarm. The magnitude of the flames prompted the intervention not only of the city's firefighters but also of personnel from the National Police, the Civil Guard, and the army. The agents evacuated the immigrants sleeping in the area in makeshift camps because they either do not have space in the authorized facilities or do not want to go there for fear of being deported to Morocco. Despite the magnitude of the flames, there have been no injuries.

The fire originated in the irregular camp, probably due to one of the bonfires that the occupants make to keep warm during the night. The fire has destroyed the precarious structures, made of wood and plastic, according to various agencies.