Austrian far-right activist Martin Sellner traveled to Ceuta following an entry of 72,000 young Moroccans into the autonomous city. Sellner, who leads the Identitarian Movement, sought to exploit the incident alongside other activists. Video footage showed activists shouting slogans calling for remigration as migrants walked through local streets.
The Identitarian Movement was founded in France in 2012 and opposes Muslim immigration, which it considers a threat to European identity. Sellner published a video showing migrants remaining in Ceuta walking through streets shouting that God is great. Sellner wrote on social media that Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez lied, while another radical cited the Great Replacement conspiracy theory to claim native Europeans are being deliberately replaced through ethnic substitution.
German and French political reactions
In Germany, around the time of the crossing in Ceuta, Alternative for Germany candidate Kristin Brinker warned on the radio about a pull factor across Europe. Brinker, who is the party lead candidate in Berlin, said that word would spread if Spain permits illegal immigrants to stay and receive full rights. The party began as an anti-euro group before evolving into an anti-immigration movement, and it is using the Ceuta crisis as campaign material in Saxony-Anhalt, Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, and Berlin.
In France, National Rally candidate Marine Le Pen launched her campaign following the incident while leading comfortably in polls. Le Pen announced that her party would restrict free movement within the Schengen area exclusively to European citizens in 2027. However, the Schengen agreement does not apply in Ceuta.
Reactions across Spanish political parties
Within Spain, the political party Vox stated that the border breach fulfilled its previous warnings, and the party promoted its core stance of national priority. In Catalonia, a political group led by Orriols approached overtaking the party Junts in support. Junts threatened to break ties with the Spanish government if any of the 6,000 Moroccan minors remaining in Ceuta are transferred to Catalonia.
The entry of 72,000 people represents an unprecedented breach of European borders that has empowered populist movements. Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez faces criticism over his passivity regarding the event, especially after messages about the planned crossing had circulated days earlier on social media among young Moroccans. Sanchez summer playlist also drew scrutiny for failing to project seriousness among European Union leaders.
Diplomatic context and border relations
Morocco maintained that the mass border crossing was not an orchestrated act. However, Spanish observers recalled the 2021 incident when Spain treated Polisario Front leader Brahim Ghali for COVID-19 in a La Rioja hospital.
The border influx could represent retaliation for a recent visit by Pedro Sanchez to Algeria. That visit aimed to improve bilateral relations that had been strained since Sanchez recognized Moroccan sovereignty over the former Spanish Sahara in 2022. Moroccan King Mohammed VI uses immigration as a weapon, similar to tactics employed by leaders in Turkey and Belarus.
