Blaming the National Intelligence Center (CNI), aware that they will not come out to defend themselves. That was the strategy initiated by the Minister of the Interior, Fernando Grande-Marlaska, as a first reaction after the violation of Spain’s territorial integrity promoted by the massive swimming crossing of people from Morocco to Ceuta. If the crossing happened between July 30 and 31, on August 1 the Interior Minister assured that there was “no report” of the situation. A statement that denied the information from this newspaper, which had already confirmed the existence of documents warning about a massive crossing. That theory was also repeated hours after the invasion of the autonomous city by Miguel Ángel Pérez, the Government delegate.
However, the declassification of 40 documents that took place this Wednesday contradicts the testimony of the socialist politicians, with notes addressed directly to Pérez’s chief of staff in Ceuta. Texts that end with five weeks of gratitude to Morocco for its actions and pointing to the State Security Forces and Corps. A ‘quarantine’ aimed at blaming others for the Government’s inaction.
Since July 27, there has been an exchange of WhatsApp messages between a person from the CNI and the Government delegation in Ceuta showing concern about the entry. Thus, that day, three days before the massive crossing, the Delegation informed the CNI that an “urgent meeting with the city, CNP (National Police Corps), and GC (Civil Guard) regarding swimmers had taken place. “Whenever you want, I will inform you,” explained the member of the Government delegation, who said they had been in the meeting since 9:30 in the morning. “When you have a moment, we talk,” he replied.
The next day, the 28th, the intelligence agent insisted: “How was yesterday’s meeting??” and in the afternoon sent the office a poster calling for a mobilization about Ceuta. The following day, given the proximity to the jump, confirmed by the CNI agents, the Center again informed the Government delegation. At 13:52 hours, they explained that “on social media (RRSS) there is a call for an assault on the fence and sea tomorrow at 8 p.m. Taking advantage of the Throne holiday and that their FCS (security forces and corps) will be busy. There are two different groups with a total of 180,000 followers. To give you an idea of the reach of the dissemination,” wrote the person responsible for conveying the information. To this, the Government delegation’s office replied: “Sus rilas” (sic.)
Despite the existence of this message exchange and more documents that have been published, the first week Grande-Marlaska, Elma Saiz, and the Government delegate’s eagerness was to deny the most. It was five days of an intense campaign about the non-existence of messages.
August 1. Grande-Marlaska stated that there was “no report that a situation like that of the 30th could exist.
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August 2. In the same vein, the Government delegate appeared before the media and insisted: “Within my competence, which is not much regarding those services, I can assure you that it is so. Here at least in this Delegation, we had no kind of information until we started to see those people entering through the border in that way.”
August 3. That Monday was the first day when, 120 hours after the massive crossing, Moncloa offered an official first version after visits to Ceuta by the President of the Government, Pedro Sánchez, and the Minister of the Interior. “Mafias” were mentioned then. They were joined by the Government spokesperson, Elma Saiz, when on August 3 she insisted: “There was no report warning of the magnitude of the figures that had to be responded to.” Asked on Spanish Television if that meant Intelligence failed, she dodged the answer and only repeated that “the magnitude of this situation was not known.” At that moment, the Defense Minister distanced herself from the official Government narrative by again pointing to Morocco and insisting that there are “other intelligence services” that also worked in the area. Furthermore, she defended ‘her men’ by claiming: “They do an exceptional job. They will not catch me in any argument.”
August 5. Fernando Grande-Marlaska again questioned the work of the National Intelligence Center. He did so during a press conference at the Ministry headquarters, where he again insisted: “If there had been any possibility that something like this could happen, I am not saying what definitely happened, but something similar to 2021 [when another 10,000 foreigners also arrived en masse to the autonomous city], there would be a report or a warning to the highest authorities and soon after. I think that says it all.” At that moment, for the first time, Marlaska did acknowledge that his department was aware that, “as happens in other summer seasons,” there could be an increase in irregular entries and that this upturn could be “encouraged” by the Supreme Court ruling of July 8.
During the following days, the dispute over the presence of reports disappeared from the Government’s public debate. Among other things because the emergency situation in which Ceuta still finds itself had to be managed. The Ministers of Childhood, Sira Rego; Foreign Affairs, José Manuel Albares; Defense, Margarita Robles; and Health, Mónica García; visited the city at different times to strive to show the Government’s support. Meanwhile, the Senate requested the appearance of the head of the Armed Forces, who was summoned for August 18 but asked to postpone the appointment to prepare the appearance. Finally, her first accountability took place on the 25th in the Congress of Deputies.
That day, Robles again distanced herself from the official narrative and assured that on July 29 there was a warning from the National Intelligence Center about a massive crossing in a communication sent to the Government Delegation in Ceuta that appears this Wednesday in the declassified papers. Although later Marlaska avoided confirming that there were reports, he toned down the tone in the press conference after the Council of Ministers by stating that everyone “acted well.”
