Jim Lawley

On 30 and 31 July around 80,000 migrants entered Ceuta from Morocco, according to the Spanish government’s latest estimate. Roughly 90 per cent have since gone back. But, according to the government’s estimate, somewhere between 7,000 and 9,000 remain in the Spanish city whose normal population is 83,000. Ceuta’s authorities believe the figure may be as high as 11,000. At least 83 bodies connected with the crossing have been recovered on the Spanish side of the border. Morocco officially acknowledges another 14 deaths but humanitarian organisations have estimated that in total more than 140 people have died since the border was breached.

Yesterday, thousands of young Moroccan men – as well as women, children and non-Moroccans – entered Ceuta, one of Spain’s tiny North African enclaves, swimming around a breakwater or breaching border fences. Police sources estimate that so far more than 40,000 – some reports are suggesting 50,000 – people have already entered Spanish territory during this wave. Today the influx continues and the situation is critical. One resident is reported as saying, ‘We are frightened tonight. We have lowered the shutters and turned off the lights. We are afraid that they may try to enter the houses.’ The temporary stay centre for immigrants, and other emergency reception and health facilities are overwhelmed.

Madrid’s regional parliament has passed what is being called the ‘conceived unborn child’ law. As soon as a pregnancy is medically accredited it will count in determining a family’s eligibility for certain benefits. After the fourteenth week of the pregnancy, if this is their third child, families will be able to access additional benefits such as discounts on public transport, grants and other subsidies. If the pregnancy is lost, families will not have to repay the benefits already received.

Spain’s cabinet has just approved a law that allows over half a million undocumented migrants and asylum seekers already in the country to regularise their status, giving them temporary residence and the right to work. Applicants now have until 30 June to prove that they do not have a criminal record and that by the end of 2025 they had either been in Spain for at least five months or had sought international protection.

Spain’s refusal to allow the United States to use its military bases at Morón de la Frontera (Seville) and Rota (Cádiz) for its war on Iran, arguing that the US-Israeli attacks are ‘unilateral military actions outside the United Nations charter’ has brought the simmering conflict between Pedro Sanchez, Spain’s socialist Prime Minister and President Trump to a head.   Sanchez’s carefully calculated strategy has been to position himself as one of the US president’s leading opponents on the world stage On Wednesday Sanchez followed up by delivering a stunning rebuke to Trump. Speaking for ten minutes on national television, he said that his government's position could be summed up in four words: ‘No a la guerra’ (No to war).

Spain has refused outright to support the United States and Israel’s military operation against Iran. The move has been applauded by Iran’s ambassador to Spain: ‘They have rejected the aggression and that is valuable to us.’ The Pentagon meanwhile has withdrawn aircraft deployed at its bases in Morón de la Frontera (Seville) and Rota (Cádiz). Pedro Sánchez, Spain’s socialist prime minister, rarely misses an opportunity to goad Trump Justifying Spain’s refusal to cooperate, José Manuel Albares, the foreign minister, insisted that, ‘A logic of violence, as we are seeing, only leads to a spiral of violence, when unilateral military actions outside the United Nations Charter… have no clear objective.