The Government takes Minister Margarita Robles to a Ceuta on alert due to the risk of another massive crossing and the crisis of minors

The Government prolongs its presence on the ground in Ceuta this Wednesday with the visit of Margarita Robles. The Minister of Defense will review the military deployment activated after the massive entry at the end of July and will meet with the president of the city, Juan Jesús Vivas, who demands more personnel and an urgent response to restore normality.

Robles takes over from Ángel Víctor Torres and José Manuel Albares, who have traveled to Ceuta in the last 48 hours. Her arrival coincides with the alert caused by calls disseminated on social media to attempt another massive crossing next August 15. The General Command has suspended permits and ordered all units to remain available until further notice.

The figures of those who remain in the autonomous city maintain some differences. Interior counted 72,000 entries and around 70,000 returns during the first days, while Torres raised the estimate to 80,000 people this Monday. The Government of Ceuta estimates that about 10,000 remain in the city and the central Executive has confirmed the affiliation of 1,342 minors, a figure still open.

Robles will review the deployment and listen to Vivas

The minister will hold a meeting with Vivas and visit the units dependent on the Terrestrial Operational Command that participate in the operation. More than 3,000 military personnel from the General Command of Ceuta are available to support the Civil Guard and the National Police in surveillance, security, and assistance tasks.

Robles assured during the first hours of the emergency that the Armed Forces would remain in the city "as long as necessary". The reinforcement includes Regulares, Cavalry, Engineers, Artillery, Logistics, and military health services. Defense now wants to check their operation and directly learn about the needs conveyed by the commanders.

The visit will also have a political aspect. Vivas has requested a permanent increase in personnel, new border infrastructures, and more staff to expedite procedures. The Ceuta president maintains that the initial reaction of the Executive "has not been up to par" with a crisis that left the border overwhelmed and affected security, public services, and economic activity.

Robles will also arrive in the midst of a discussion about previous alerts. Interior maintains that intelligence services did not communicate a threat comparable to the entry that finally occurred, while the PP assures that the CNI had warned of the risk. The National Court has asked the Civil Guard to clarify what warnings it received before July 30.

Albares promises that irregular entries will end in return

José Manuel Albares visited Ceuta this Tuesday and defended that all people who entered irregularly will be returned to Morocco. The Minister of Foreign Affairs explained that he holds daily conversations with his Moroccan counterpart, Nasser Bourita, to accelerate returns and strengthen the border.

"Whoever enters irregularly will be returned to Morocco," Albares affirmed. The minister also warned that these people will not be able to reach the Peninsula or remain indefinitely in Ceuta. Foreign Affairs considers that diplomatic channels allowed the most serious phase of the crisis to be quickly overcome and maintains that Rabat is willing to accept returns.

Vivas has conveyed a much more critical position to the minister. The Ceuta president demands urgent expulsion procedures, sufficient officials, and administrative and judicial services capable of working every day of the week. He also calls for a border less dependent on Moroccan collaboration and with its own means to resist another massive entry.

The Government has reinforced the Civil Guard's personnel by 40% and the National Police's by nearly 30%. The Government Delegation also has more staff to complete identifications. The long waits at the Superior Police Headquarters and the lack of translators show, however, that the situation is still far from having normalized.

Foreign Affairs has also activated a campaign to combat false messages that encourage crossing the border. The European Union has reached an agreement with Meta and TikTok to expedite content verification about Ceuta and block publications linked to human trafficking before the August 15 call.

The communities face the first step for the reception of minors on Thursday

The next step will arrive this Thursday. Sira Rego will gather the autonomous communities in the Sectoral Commission for Children and Adolescents to coordinate the care of minors and prepare for their possible referrals. The Government has approved an extraordinary allocation of 25 million euros to respond to the saturation of Ceuta's resources.

The first option will be to locate families and study an individualized reunification, both in Morocco and in another Spanish community or a European country. When that path proves impossible, the communities must assume guardianship and guarantee the protection of children and adolescents.

The PP has confirmed that its regional governments will participate in the meeting and comply with the law, although it maintains its criticism of the distribution model and threatens to appeal certain decisions. The far-right Vox has chosen confrontation. Its officials in Aragon, Extremadura, and Castilla y León have announced that they will stand up to the Government and reject any transfer that does not end with a return to Morocco.

The reform of the Immigration Law establishes binding reception when Ceuta, Melilla, or the Canary Islands far exceed their capacity. A technical team from Youth and Childhood will be installed in Ceuta next Sunday to complete the files and prepare the first referrals during the coming weeks.