Madrid's second Ceuta march renews call for an early election
Thousands joined a second March for Dignity in Madrid on Saturday to protest the government's handling of migrant crossings into Ceuta and demand an early general election. Sociedad Civil Española organised the rally with backing from the People's Party and far-right Vox. Government officials counted 20,000 participants; organisers claimed 180,000. The late-July crossings from Morocco into Spain's North African city have kept border policy at the centre of a national political confrontation.
Geopolitics··Morning
A second Ceuta march crosses central Madrid
Thousands of demonstrators marched through Madrid on Saturday to protest the Spanish government's handling of mass migrant crossings into Ceuta, Spain's city on the North African coast. The civil group Sociedad Civil Española organised the second March for Dignity with backing from the main opposition People's Party and the far-right Vox party. Participants called for an early general election and for Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez to leave office. The rally began at Plaza de Cibeles and ended at the Arco del Triunfo. Spain's government delegation counted about 20,000 people, while organisers claimed 180,000; the two figures are rival estimates rather than an agreed turnout. Vox leader Santiago Abascal and People's Party secretary-general Miguel Tellado attended. Their presence put the July border crisis at the centre of another opposition mobilisation in the capital.[1], [2]
July crossings keep thousands in Ceuta
The confrontation traces to 30 and 31 July, when more than 70,000 people entered Ceuta from Morocco. Most were returned, but thousands remained in the small Spanish city. Dozens of migrants died during the surge, according to the primary report. The Spanish government estimates that between 6,000 and 10,000 people are still stranded there. Sánchez said on Tuesday that Morocco's border controls had not handled the episode adequately, that an investigation continued and that Madrid had asked Rabat for answers. The unresolved presence of migrants and the dispute over responsibility have kept the border issue active well beyond the two days of crossings. The protest was directed at the Spanish government's response to that event, not at a new crossing on Saturday; the figures for July arrivals and those still in the city describe different stages of the same crisis.[1]
Opposition demands meet a proposed returns decree
Abascal demanded deportation to countries of origin for everyone who arrived in Ceuta in late July. He accused Sánchez of serving Morocco and pushed for an early election. Tellado charged the government with serious negligence over the border crossing and said people should demand protection of Spain's territorial integrity. These are the opposition politicians' claims and proposals, not findings of an inquiry. Meanwhile, El País reported on Saturday that the government planned to approve a decree on Tuesday to speed returns from Ceuta to Morocco. EFE says the proposed text would shorten asylum-application processing periods for people who arrived after the mass entry and limit their ability to remain in Spain while cases are decided. The decree was still a plan at the time of the march. A previous March for Dignity under the same banner, before the July crossings, had also demanded Sánchez's resignation and an early vote.[1], [2]
