After Spanish PM Sánchez accuses Israel of disinformation campaign over Ceuta crisis, FM Sa’ar calls out ‘brazen lie’

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez accused Russia and Israel of spreading and amplifying disinformation over the influx of migrants from Morocco into the Spanish territory of Ceuta. 

In an interview with Cadena SER’s Hoy por Hoy, Sánchez claimed that research from the European Union's foreign service, the EEAS, showed that Russia and Israel were behind the spread of disinformation ahead of the invasion of migrants into the territory. 

Between July 30 and 31, around 72,000 illegal migrants broke into the Spanish territory of Ceuta from Morocco. While some were returned to Morocco, thousands have remained, creating makeshift encampments within Ceuta. 

As dirty Sánchez tells the world that Ceuta has "returned to normal".

These are the most recent scenes out of the conquered city. pic.twitter.com/VGtSh3uEQz

— Tommy Robinson 🇬🇧 (@TRobinsonNewEra) August 30, 2026

Spanish opposition parties along with some human rights groups and some Moroccan expatriates have accused the Moroccan government of allowing the migrants to cross into Ceuta. Rabat has denied any complicity in the surge of illegal migrants, a claim Sánchez also denied. 

“When people talk and speculate about the participation of Moroccan authorities, I deny this outright,” Sánchez said. 

Instead, Sánchez said Israel and Russia helped spread “disinformation” through social media. 

“What we know so far is that a Supreme Court ruling from July 8th was misrepresented and spread through social media via hoaxes, disinformation, and even by criminal organizations that traffic in human beings,” Sánchez claimed. “The misrepresentation claimed that the Supreme Court ruling stated that if someone entered the autonomous city of Ceuta, for example, they could not be returned at the border, which is untrue. Nevertheless, this type of misinformation was used and disseminated through social media.” 

“And what we also know is that after July 30 and 31 there was an expansion of these hoaxes and this disinformation by social networks associated with both Russia and Israel and an international far-right movement that always uses migration, not only to attack Spain, but also Europe and divide it,” he accused. 

Spain's PM Pedro Sánchez blamed Israel, Russia and the far right for spreading "disinformation" over 75,000 illegal migrants who crossed from Morocco into Ceuta in late July. pic.twitter.com/ITVvIrgixp

— Open Source Intel (@Osint613) August 31, 2026

Sánchez claimed that Russian and Israel aided the disinformation campaign due to Spanish criticism over the Gaza and Ukraine wars. 

“It’s evident that if Russia engages in disinformation about this issue, or if Israel also spreads misinformation about this issue, criticizing the Spanish government, it won’t be because they are concerned about immigration in Spain or Europe, but rather precisely because of the political stances we are maintaining, which I believe are courageous, in respect to the genocide in Gaza, or in respect to Putin’s invasion of Ukraine,” Sánchez continued. 

🇪🇸 Spain's far-left Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez explicitly cleared Morocco of responsibility for the Ceuta invasion and blamed Russia, Israel, and an international far-right movement for online disinformation.

"When people talk and speculate about the participation of Moroccan… https://t.co/IoHVtW9jag pic.twitter.com/bOpvREpjts

— Visegrád 24 (@visegrad24) August 31, 2026

Sanchez did not provide any evidence for his claims, despite citing the reported research. 

Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar accused Sánchez of “lying shamelessly” in order to distract from his “disgraceful failure to manage his country’s affairs.” 

Prime Minister @sanchezcastejon is lying shamelessly.

In his interview with Cadena SER today, he lied again, astonishingly accusing Israel of disseminating misleading information regarding the events in Ceuta.

This is a brazen lie.

Continuing to spread defamatory lies will not… pic.twitter.com/Jb6RxciCdR

— Gideon Sa'ar | גדעון סער (@gidonsaar) August 31, 2026

“This is a brazen lie,” Sa’ar added. 

It is not the first time Sánchez’s government has accused Israel of fueling the migrant crisis. After Israeli Ambassador to the UN Danny Danon criticized Spain's handling of the mass influx of migrants into the territory, Transportation Minister Óscar Puente implied that Israel was seeking to destabilize Spain by highlighting the crisis. 

Online conspiracies have also accused Israel of being involved with the Ceuta crisis because of it its relations with Morocco, which have grown under the Abraham Accords.