What are the key facts about the May 2026 mass border incursion in Ceuta — including the estimated number of migrants who crossed, the death toll, Spain's response, accusations against EU member states for "selfish, polarizing and unlawful" reactions like Italy's Schengen suspens

Death toll

• The confirmed death toll rose over successive days. At least 18 people died on the first day . The figure then increased to at least 57 and then at least 67 as more bodies were recovered . Spain's Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska announced 67 fatalities on August 1 .

Spain's immediate response

• Military deployment: Spain deployed additional military personnel to Ceuta to restore order at the border .
• Sánchez visit: Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez traveled to Ceuta on the morning of July 31, accompanied by Interior Minister Grande-Marlaska .
• Mass returns: Spanish authorities carried out mass summary returns of migrants to Morocco, expelling more than 25,000 .

Cause: Supreme Court ruling exploited by traffickers

• On April 8, 2026, Spain's Supreme Court ruled that migrants arriving by sea could not be summarily deported, unlike those entering by land or over the fence . This created a legal distinction that smuggling networks exploited.
• Sánchez blamed "mafia groups" and organized crime networks for spreading false rumors — amplified via social media and messaging apps — that Spain had opened its borders, deliberately misrepresenting the court ruling to trigger a mass rush .
• Traffickers told migrants that if they reached Spanish soil by sea they could not be sent back, which drove the surge .

EU divisions: "Selfish, polarizing and unlawful" reactions

Sánchez condemned the response of some EU member states, calling their actions "selfish, polarizing, unlawful" and driven by short-term domestic politics .

• Italy suspended the Schengen free-travel agreement with Spain for one month, closing air and sea borders, announced by PM Giorgia Meloni on July 31 . Spain summoned the Italian ambassador in protest .
• France reinforced border checks with Spain and deployed a rapid-response border force .
• Finland's Interior Minister Mari Rantanen said that because "Spain has completely failed to protect the Schengen Area's external border," all EU countries should reinstate border controls ; Finland and Denmark asked for a full suspension of Schengen for Spain .
• Germany also tightened its border controls with Spain .
• 22 of 27 EU member states signed a letter initiated by Italy and Denmark calling for an emergency meeting on the bloc's migration response .

Spain's defense of its border record

• Spain's Foreign Ministry defended its record, pointing to Frontex data showing Spain is one of the EU's most effective members at managing irregular migration and returns . Madrid insisted the pressure on Ceuta was caused by criminal misinformation, not a failure of Spanish border enforcement .
• A former senior Spanish EU official dismissed Italy's Schengen suspension as legally dubious and politically motivated .

Emergency EU meeting demand

• In response to what he called a "selfish, polarizing, unlawful" reaction from some member states, Sánchez demanded an urgent video summit of all EU interior ministers to coordinate a unified response . As of August 1, the EU was facing growing pressure to hold emergency political talks .