This week, Spain faced a mass breach of its own border. Its response revealed exactly what the Spanish government believes about sovereignty when Spanish territory is at risk.

Beginning on July 30, tens of thousands of people crossed from Morocco into Ceuta, Spain’s small territory on the North African coast. Spain’s Interior Ministry estimated about 50,000 crossings, while Ceuta’s president placed the number closer to 60,000. The movement overwhelmed a city of roughly 85,000 residents. As of July 31, authorities had reported at least 57 deaths, including people who drowned or were crushed near the Tarajal breakwater. The figures remain provisional.

Spain deployed police and military forces, reinforced the border, and coordinated with Morocco to restore control. Many migrants returned voluntarily after entering Ceuta. Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez traveled to the territory, described the crossing as a violation of Spain’s territorial integrity, and promised to use the resources necessary to protect the enclave.

Spain had a legitimate responsibility to respond. A government must control its borders, protect the people living inside them, and prevent a chaotic situation from causing further deaths. The deployment of security forces was a reasonable exercise of state authority. The conduct of those forces should still be examined under Spanish and European law.

Spain granted itself an immediate presumption of defensive legitimacy. Its leaders expected the world to understand that soldiers at the border served a protective purpose. The deaths in Ceuta didn’t automatically turn Spanish border enforcement into an attempt to destroy Moroccans. Spain expected its actions to be judged according to the threat, the purpose of the response, the methods used, and the decisions made under pressure.

Israel has received no comparable presumption from Sánchez.

In September 2025, the Spanish prime minister announced measures intended, in his words, to stop........

© The Times of Israel (Blogs)