A tamer version of this post was first published for Honest Reporting over here.
When more than 50,000 Moroccan migrants stormed into the Spanish enclave of Ceuta, by sea and on foot, over the last week of July, the crisis was real, tragic, and entirely explicable. Ceuta, a city of roughly 85,000 residents, was overwhelmed almost overnight, and more than 70 people were killed.
As is usual with tragedies, someone had to be blamed. And we all know who this someone invariably is.
When in Doubt, Blame Israel
According to an analysis by the Antisemitism Research Center at the Combat Antisemitism Movement, within 72 hours, posts accusing Israel or “Jewish interests” of orchestrating the Ceuta crossings reached an estimated 103 million people on X, drawn from more than 170 high-impact posts from over 100 influencer accounts.
Among those pushing the conspiracy theory: Iran’s foreign ministry spokesman, who described Morocco’s government as a tool being used to punish Spain for its “pro-Palestinian” positions. Likewise with renowned geopolitical analysts
He certainly is full of something…
How a Conspiracy Was Built
How did these rocket scientists arrive at Israel/the Jews?
The conspiracy theory rests on stitching together unrelated facts into an invented motive. The pattern goes roughly like this: Spain has taken an increasingly hostile posture toward Israel over the past two years – unilaterally recognizing Palestinian statehood outside of negotiations, joining accusations of genocide against Israel at the International Court of Justice, and publicly opposing the joint US-Israeli operation against Iran while refusing Spanish bases for related use.
From there, conspiracy theorists leapt to the claim that Israel enlisted its Moroccan ally to destabilize Spain in retaliation.
To back up that leap, promoters of the theory pointed to genuinely existing but disconnected facts: Israel’s warm diplomatic relationship with Morocco under the Abraham Accords, Israel’s 2020 recognition of Moroccan sovereignty over Western Sahara, and Israeli officials having publicly criticized Spain over Ceuta’s colonial status.
To buttress their claims, some seized on this tweet by Danny Danon, Israel’s Ambassador to the United Nations, who was merely pointing out Spain’s hypocrisy:
From this tweet, bad actors manufactured the malicious narrative that Israel had enlisted its Moroccan ally to destabilize Spain in retaliation. Even Spanish Transport Minister Óscar Puente responded by implying Danon’s remark was itself evidence of Israeli involvement.
Whackadoodle Candace Owens went so far as to circulate a seven-year-old post from Yair Netanyahu, the prime minister’s son and someone who holds no government office, as supposed proof.
Because, Candace Owens.
From here, screenshots and video clips were recut and captioned to incriminate the Jewish state. Like this one of a Spanish woman – rebranded as a “Zionist” – encouraging the migrants. With bonus connection to the infamous “dancing Israelis” conspiracy theory:
The Evidence? None, Nada, Zilch
There is no evidence – none – that Israel organized, financed or coordinated the Ceuta crossing.
Reports by Reuters, AP and other outlets point to several overlapping causes:
- A recent Spanish Supreme Court ruling that weakened the deterrent effect of immediate returns for some migrants arriving by sea;
- Widespread online rumors falsely claiming Spain’s border had effectively opened;
- Trafficking networks exploiting those rumors;
- Long-standing economic hardship among young Moroccans; and
- Morocco’s critical role in controlling migration into Spain.
Even Spanish intelligence assessments reported in the Spanish press have reportedly concluded that while Morocco may have tolerated and politically exploited the migration surge, there was no evidence of an Israeli role.
Morocco Has Played This Card Before
Ceuta and Melilla are Spanish-controlled cities on the North African mainland that Morocco claims, and the European Union’s only land borders with Africa. Madrid depends heavily on Rabat to police that border, which gives Morocco real leverage – leverage it has used before. In 2021, after Spain quietly admitted Polisario Front leader Brahim Ghali for COVID-19 treatment without informing Morocco, Moroccan border guards eased controls and roughly 9,000 people crossed into Ceuta within two days. Spain eventually moved to appease Rabat, endorsing Morocco’s autonomy proposal for Western Sahara in 2022, without going as far as full recognition.
The Only Real Israeli Connection
The only thing about Ceuta that relates to Israel at all is Spanish hypocrisy. Spain has repeatedly criticized Israel over accusations of “colonialism,” while itself governing two enclaves on the African mainland that Morocco claims as its own – enclaves whose border security Madrid outsources to Rabat. Israeli UN Ambassador Danny Danon made exactly that point in his tweet above
Whatever one’s view of the competing claims over Ceuta, Melilla or Western Sahara, none of them demonstrates Israeli involvement in the migration crisis.
Yet within hours, Israel once again became the internet’s preferred explanation for a complicated international event.
That has become a familiar pattern. When facts are inconvenient, conspiracy theories rush to fill the vacuum, and Israel is invariably cast as the villain.
Funny how that works.
