On Ceuta, Sánchez’s stance is at odds with the police and sections of the PSOE

Madrid. In the end, Pedro Sánchez apologised to the residents of Ceuta, acknowledging that the situation remains unresolved and that the state’s response has been inadequate. He did so in a video released on the eve of today’s parliamentary hearing, ahead of which he can only hope that the news reports do not deliver further blows to the narrative he has been adapting to suit the occasion over the past month. On Monday, he had accused the Russians and Israelis of being the hidden masterminds behind the migrant influx that has been bringing the city to its knees for a month, but even the European Commission has stated that whilst Russia has certainly capitalised on the crisis, there is no evidence to suggest it caused it.

However, the most embarrassing development came on Tuesday evening, when El Español revealed that the police had sent a report to the judge investigating the events in Ceuta. The report states that the operation was allegedly planned and carried out by Moroccan law enforcement officers. For Sánchez, this means ‘first take was a winner’ – in other words, he was right when he described that dramatic human avalanche as an ‘attack on territorial integrity’. It is a pity that he did not draw the necessary conclusions, but went on holiday instead. The report, drawn up by the intelligence unit of the General Directorate of Border Police, emphasises that the incident cannot be viewed as a migratory phenomenon, but rather as an attack on sovereignty, precisely because the majority of those who crossed the border illegally turned back within a few hours. This interpretation highlights the seriousness of the incident and clashes with a now-famous remark by the Minister for Transport, Óscar Puente, who tweeted on 1 August: “Another crisis resolved by Pedro Sánchez”.

The report highlights “the limited presence of Moroccan law enforcement officers and the active channelling of the crowd towards transit points by these officers”. This account would be consistent with what the Spanish media have been reporting for some time, namely that they have identified Moroccan officers in the crowd and vehicles providing logistical support. Furthermore, the investigators explicitly refer to motives linked to territorial claims, ‘calculated ambiguity’ and ‘gradual advance’ – characteristics typical of ‘grey-zone strategies’, aimed at discrediting the intelligence apparatus of the targeted country. However, the report adds that an alert had been issued on 29 July, specifically warning of the wave of attacks planned for the 30th.

Even more surprising is that the Home Secretary was kept in the dark about the whole affair. Shortly after midnight on Wednesday, Fernando Grande-Marlaska wrote to the Director-General of the National Police, Francisco Pardo, asking whether the report was true and why nobody had informed him. Hours later, the two met and, once the meeting had concluded, the ministry announced that the report did not place blame on the Moroccan authorities, nor had the intelligence services ever classified the possibility of an invasion in late July as ‘high risk’. In short, the government was denying the existence of documents which, in the meantime, had already been quoted or even photographed in all the national newspapers. Furthermore, the minister had not been alerted because the judge herself had instructed the intelligence unit not to inform their superiors. This is a telling detail of the calm manner in which investigative departments operate in Spain.

Meanwhile, the Spanish are taking action: yesterday, the National Federation of Municipalities organised demonstrations across the country to mark Ceuta Day, on 2 September, in commemoration of the battle of 1415. The Socialist Party (PSOE) attempted to thwart the initiative by putting pressure on its local councillors, but there was strong support even from socialist mayors. Mavericks? PSOE spokesperson Montse Mínguez came up with a more poetic description: “Free verse”. It remains to be seen, in what is also an epoch-making crisis for the party, who – between the rank and file and the leadership – will bite first or sing last.