The CNI warned Morocco and the Spanish government on July 29 of mass calls to enter Ceuta

MadridThere were indeed warnings: at the very least, the CNI alerted both Morocco and the Spanish government about mass calls on social media to enter Ceuta. It did so with an informative note to the Moroccan intelligence services the day before the crisis and also via WhatsApp to the executive's delegation in Ceuta and to commanders of the Civil Guard. Reports from security forces prior to the crisis also warned of a possible increase in irregular entries following the Supreme Court ruling of July 8th, which rejected hot returns by sea hot returns by sea. This is what can be gathered from the reports and communications that the Council of Ministers agreed to declassify this Tuesday and which it has published through the Moncloa website. Warnings that, according to the Spanish government, were not sufficient to anticipate the mass entry of migrants.

After releasing all the information, sources from Moncloa reaffirmed that the CNI "did not issue any formal alert and limited itself to conveying information via message and a brief phone call to the government delegation of Ceuta and the Civil Guard". Adding: "At no time did the CNI send a formal notice or alert to its chain of command or to any member of the executive through any channel". Furthermore, from the Spanish government's assessment, an unusual criticism of the Spanish intelligence services emerges: "An organization that believes that a mass entry will occur the next day does not limit itself to sending an ambiguous WhatsApp to a minor official: it elevates it". At the same time, Moncloa also provided the media with sources from the CNI, an unusual move: the agency itself says that despite warning of the mass call on social networks, it did not anticipate the "magnitude" of what happened on the 30th.

Pedro Sánchez also assessed it on X. He summarized that "the CNI informed the government delegation in Ceuta that a call was circulating in two Facebook groups" with more than 180,000 followers "to enter the city" coinciding with the Feast of the Throne; a campaign "monitored" by other institutions, but which "could not be interpreted as an indicator of the scale, nature or probability of what happened later". "Not even the CNI did so", he stated, remarking that it only made one call to the cabinet of the state government delegation in Ceuta and "did not issue any greater alert" to the army, the police or the Ministry of the Interior. An element that he understands given that, according to Sánchez, "no one could anticipate the migration crisis" that broke out and he takes the opportunity to conclude that the Spanish government "acted as soon as the threat materialized, mobilizing all available resources".

While La Moncloa has reaffirmed that there were no warnings, the PP has not interpreted it the same way. The spokesperson, Ester Muñoz, believes that the reports reveal a "state lie" on the part of Sánchez and a "malicious dereliction of duty": "He is responsible for the invasion". But the barbs at the Spanish government have also come from its partners: for Sumar, more diligence was needed to prevent the massive entry of immigrants, and for Gabriel Rufián (ERC), the declassification shows that the "CNI is acting against the government".

The decision by the Spanish government to publish all these declassified reports regarding Ceuta comes after the clash of versions within the executive branch over what was known and what was not before the massive entry of immigrants on July 30, basically between Margarita Robles (Defense), who says that there were indeed warnings, and the rest of the ministries.

The documents

There is a total of 40 declassified documents dating from July 1st to August 1st, including an informative note from the CNI dated July 29th warning of Facebook and WhatsApp groups calling to cross the border, by sea or by land, on July 30th, the Throne Day in Morocco, taking advantage of the fact that border security forces had to be moved to other locations. Furthermore, it was highlighted that these were groups on social networks with a great capacity for dissemination.

Consult all the documents hereAccording to the Moncloa website, the CNI sent an informative note to the Moroccan intelligence services the day before the mass crossing of people at the border in Ceuta, in which they warned them of a "possible entry" of immigrants into the Spanish autonomous city. In accordance with this document, titled Irregular immigration. Early warning. Possible entries into Ceuta during the week of the Throne Day, the CNI warned that there were "especially active" profiles on social networks that spoke of a window of opportunity to enter Spain: they referred to a WhatsApp group with the name "Assault on the Ceuta fence" that was preparing an entry attempt on July 30. The CNI specified that the administrator of this group has two phones, one Spanish and another Algerian, in addition to a Facebook group with 60,000 followers and another with about 22,000 members with the name Hraga Ceuta.

The intelligence services highlighted some posts that were being made, such as: "Whoever wants to cross has one last chance on Throne Day at 8 p.m. The authorities will be distracted by celebrations and parades". Or also: "Castillejos-Ceuta. The whole week is fine for those who want to cross, this is the opportunity. May God facilitate it".

On the same day, the National Center for Immigration and Borders (CENIF) warned of a "potential risk" of irregular immigrant entries, as a consequence derived from the Supreme Court ruling of July 8 that rejected summary returns if entering by swimming. Thus, it raised the "need" to foresee three scenarios, defining as "high" the probability of an entry of people swimming; as "medium" an entry of people by sea and jumping the fence; and as "medium-low" a coordinated action. Mind you, it warned that if this last scenario were to occur, the risk would be "extreme". "It cannot be guaranteed that [the entry of immigrants] will take place, but when this type of activity has been detected on social networks, it has sometimes materialized," the report says.

WhatsApp conversations

The website published by Moncloa also reflects the conversations between agencies and ministries. In this sense, a conversation stands out on July 29th itself between the executive's delegation in Ceuta and the CNI, as well as another between the CNI and the Civil Guard in which they inform them of the call for entry into Ceuta, especially highlighting the "scope of the dissemination" they could have. We reproduce the dialogue below:

CNI: "On social media, a call is being made for an assault by the fence and by sea tomorrow at 8 p.m.".

CNI: "Taking advantage of the Throne Day festival and the fact that their security forces will be busy".

CNI: "There are two different groups with a total of 180,000 people".

CNI: "To give you an idea of the scope of the dissemination".

Delegation: "Received [and subsequently it is reflected that there is an eleven-minute call]"

One can also read another WhatsApp conversation between the CNI and the UCE-3 of the Civil Guard in which the intelligence services warn of the same thing: "We have information about an attempt to enter by swimming and jumping the fence for tomorrow [July 30th], the Throne Day holiday". The Civil Guard responded with the contacts that were on the ground on those dates, since the interlocutor from the armed institution who spoke with the CNI admitted that he had had to leave. Following this, an eleven-minute call is reflected.

The role of Morocco

On July 30, the situation was already one of being overwhelmed, as evidenced by various declassified documents from both the army and the Civil Guard. In fact, on the morning of July 30, it was said that it was "very likely" that an attempt at a "massive entry of immigrants would occur, taking advantage of the Throne Day festivities in Morocco," as reported by the ground army to the Armed Forces Intelligence Center (CIFAS). The situation was one of "migratory chaos" and "saturation" of the army. The Civil Guard expressed itself in the same direction.

Regarding the role of the Moroccan authorities, the army highlighted on the 30th that it was "likely" that they were not actively favoring the wave of entry, but it did point to "negligent and passive" action. They said it was likely that they would increase their presence at the border starting on the 1st, when the Throne Day celebration ended, since until then they had moved part of the army and police from the border to other points. That is why what the CNI says that same day is relevant: it describes that no "proactive reaction from the Moroccan authorities to the loss of control of the situation" has been detected, but adds that the participation of Morocco to restore control of the Ceuta border is "essential." Thus, they add that the Alawite regime will accept the return of immigrants who have accessed irregularly through the border to try to "put an end to the crisis." A cooperative face of Morocco that Moncloa has strived to underline from the very first day.