Spain-Israel social media feud erupts after Ceuta migrant crisis: Why Israel is being linked

A social media clash has ensued between Spain and Israel following the massive migrant surge in Ceuta, a Spanish North African enclave. Around 60,000 migrants tried to cross into the disputed Spanish enclave, mostly swimming around the small border post that juts into the Mediterranean Sea. The Spanish government announced on Saturday that at least 67 people have been killed, while declaring that the issue was addressed with migrants returning from the enclave.

Ceuta has been a point of dispute

Ceuta and another Spanish-controlled enclave, Melilla, have been a point of dispute between Spain and Morocco. Morocco is the only Arab nation to have signed an open, formal defence pact with Israel. They have normalised relations, and Israel has formally agreed to Morocco's claim over Western Sahara. The ruling royal family has maintained unwavering strategic ties with Israel; the relationship faces consistent internal domestic protests over genocide in Gaza.

The Moroccan Association of Human Rights, which held the Moroccan state responsible for the development, condemned "the worrying silence of officials and institutions" which have still not responded publicly to the crisis. It was clearly not a coincidence that roughly 60000 migrants all chose the same day to cross to the territory.

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez blamed the sudden influx on human trafficking mafias who exaggerated a Supreme Court ruling in July that barred authorities from immediately returning migrants who arrive by sea. Ignacio Cembrero, a Spanish journalist specialised in migration in North Africa, said that “without a doubt, the July 8 ruling has played a role… but that doesn’t explain the level of mobilisation.”

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Why is Spain hinting at Israel?

Spain's Sánchez government has been notably critical of Israel; it recognised a Palestinian state in 2024, has criticised Israeli conduct in Gaza, and Sánchez himself called the Ceuta crossing an "attack on Spain's territorial integrity" while facing criticism from Danon. He has also repeatedly angered the Trump administration over NATO spending, base access during Iran operations, and with his posture toward Washington.

Middle East Forum fellow Amine Ayoub wrote an April article proposing that Israel should back Morocco's claim to Ceuta and Melilla as a way to pressure Spain over its criticism of Israel and the US, laying out diplomatic signalling, lobbying through Washington, and accusations of hypocrisy as tactics. Michael Rubin of Middle East Forum and former Pentagon advisor also publicly called on Trump to formally recognise the enclaves as occupied Moroccan territory, and separately urged Morocco's king to organise a march to "reclaim" them.

On several other occasions, US President and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu have denounced Sanchez publicly. Congressman Mario Díaz-Balart told a Spanish outlet in April that Ceuta and Melilla “are not part of Spain but lie within Moroccan territory,” though he noted actual US recognition would be an administration decision.A House Appropriations Committee document in late April went further institutionally, describing Ceuta and Melilla as Spanish-administered cities "located in Moroccan territory" and backing Secretary of State Rubio's efforts to encourage dialogue on their “future status”, the first time a US legislative body cast doubt on Spanish sovereignty there.

The ongoing Social media feud between Israeli and Spanish leadership

This has been fuelled by the ongoing social feud. Israel's UN Ambassador Danny Danon criticised Madrid's handling of the crisis, in a post on the social media platform X, he said that Spain has forfeited its moral authority, “Spain, which never misses an opportunity to lecture Israel, has declared a state of emergency in Ceuta following the crisis over its immigration policy,” he continued, "Maybe before it continues lecturing us, it's time it explained to the world why it still maintains colonial enclaves in Africa."

Spanish transport minister Oscar Puente responded with a post,"Well, things are starting to get pretty clear."

Even though the Spanish Transport minister did not provide any elaborate explanation on his social media post, Spanish media widely interpreted Danon's message and ran with it, lending credibility to the conspiracy theories going around about possible Israeli involvement in the crisis, despite no credible evidence linking Israel to the crisis.

Israel's charged'affaires in Spain, Dana Erlich, publicly distanced the government from Danon's comments, saying that it did not reflect official Israeli policy. “The comment made by Israel's Ambassador to the UN on the issue does not represent the position of the State of Israel.”