Thousands of residents of the Spanish exclave of Ceuta took to the streets on Sunday, marching toward the city’s border with Morocco to demand tougher frontier enforcement and the removal of migrants who remain in the city nearly two months after a large-scale influx, according to local outlets and Breitbart News.
The demonstration was organized by the Federation of Neighborhood Associations, which rallied members and other residents under the banner “S.O.S. Ceuta Invaded,” with the march heading toward the Tarajal border crossing — the point connecting Ceuta to Morocco and the site of the main events during the late-July migration surge.
A dual protest converges on Tarajal
Local media reported that more than a hundred members of a Ceuta bikers association held a simultaneous protest, riding through the city’s streets before assembling at the Juan Carlos I esplanade, about 1.8 miles from the Moroccan border. El Faro de Ceuta reported that the bikers’ demonstration ultimately merged with the neighborhood association’s march, with the combined group proceeding on foot toward Tarajal.
Chants aimed at Morocco echoed through the march, with participants referring to the neighboring country as a “scoundrel” and stressing that Ceuta belongs both to the Caballas — as Ceuta’s inhabitants refer to themselves — and to Spain. The group also appealed to the European Union for support, chanting, “Europe, listen, Ceuta is your fight.”
A manifesto delivered by other means
According to El Pueblo de Ceuta, a representative of the Federation of Neighborhood Associations had planned to read a manifesto upon reaching the border crossing. However, the person designated to read the document was unable to arrive on time due to circumstances unrelated to the event. The association instead shared the text with local outlets.
El Pueblo, summarizing the manifesto, reported that the group once again condemned the migration surge and what it described as a “systematic violation of our borders, which have been colonized by the inaction of others.” The text voiced the fears and concerns of residents who feel “abandoned” by Spain’s central government, arguing that their safety and social peace were disrupted by the influx.
“Ceuta has shown extraordinary resilience and composure in the face of this outrage, but the patience of its citizens has its limits,” the manifesto reportedly read. “We will not tolerate the normalization of this assault on our sovereignty. We demand security, we demand respect, and we demand that words of institutional support be translated into decisive action to protect our land.”
Four demands laid out
Speaking on behalf of the city’s residents, the neighborhood associations outlined four central demands. First, they called for the immediate reinforcement of border security, including the permanent and “uncompromising” deployment of all necessary security forces to guarantee absolute Spanish control of the frontier.
Second, they demanded the immediate deportation of migrants who remain in Ceuta nearly two months after the influx. Third, they pressed for heightened security measures in the city’s streets, insisting that Ceuta is not a “camp” but their home. Fourth, they called for an immediate halt to all mass amnesty and regularization processes in Spain, arguing that such policies create a “call effect” that draws additional migrants.
The demonstration underscores the lingering tensions in the North African enclave, where residents continue to grapple with the aftermath of the July events at the Tarajal crossing. The protest’s organizers framed their appeals as both a plea to Madrid and a signal to Brussels, seeking to elevate the city’s border concerns to a European audience.
Reporting from El Faro de Ceuta and El Pueblo de Ceuta was cited in this account, along with coverage by Breitbart News.
Source: www.breitbart.com — https://www.breitbart.com/europe/2026/09/21/watch-sos-ceuta-invaded-spaniards-protest-near-citys-border-with-morocco/