Ceuta migration crisis: Spanish judge orders review of Vivas-Sánchez calls

17:45

A Spanish National Court judge has ordered the urgent disclosure of telephone records involving Ceuta's president, Juan Jesús Vivas, and Spain's central government in the days preceding the mass arrival of migrants from Morocco at the end of July.

Judge María Tardón has asked for a detailed record of calls made by Vivas to Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez or his chief of staff, Diego Rubio, between July 27 and July 30. The request forms part of the judicial investigation into the events of July 30 and 31, when a large number of migrants entered Ceuta from Morocco.

Court moves to verify conflicting accounts

The request follows Vivas's testimony before the National Court, where he described repeated attempts to alert the central government to the deteriorating situation in the autonomous city.

According to his account, he made ten attempts to contact the government during the critical period, with only three resulting in conversations. Vivas said the contacts that were successful involved Rubio, while he was unable to speak directly with Sánchez until the crisis was already unfolding on July 30.

The judicial request could provide an independent factual basis for assessing the competing accounts of those communications.

The central government has disputed Vivas's version. Moncloa has said its own records show nine communications between the respective government offices during the period and maintains that they were answered either immediately or shortly afterward. It also says Vivas requested a direct conversation with Sánchez only on July 30, when the two ultimately spoke.

Warnings before the border surge

Vivas told the court that concerns about the growing pressure on Ceuta had emerged before the mass crossings. He said he had contacted the central government's representative in Ceuta and subsequently sought additional security personnel, a national emergency response and a unified command structure.

He also described contacts with several ministers, including officials responsible for defence, foreign affairs, the interior and territorial policy. Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares, according to Vivas's testimony, told him that relations with Morocco were in good shape at the time.

The Ceuta leader's account places particular emphasis on the period before July 30, when he says he was trying to convince Madrid that the situation required measures beyond the ordinary management of migration.

Direct contact with Sánchez came after the crisis began

Vivas said his first direct conversation with Sánchez about the situation took place on the afternoon of July 30, after thousands of migrants had already crossed into Ceuta. He subsequently urged the prime minister to travel to the city, arguing that a visit would help reassure residents and demonstrate the central government's presence.

Records released by Moncloa indicate that Sánchez and Vivas eventually spoke on July 30, while subsequent communications concerned the prime minister's planned visit to Ceuta.

The chronology is now central to the investigation. By requesting the call records, Judge Tardón is seeking documentary evidence that can be compared with the testimony of Vivas and the account provided by the central government.

The judicial process therefore moves beyond competing political narratives and toward a reconstruction of what communications actually took place, when they occurred and how the authorities responded in the days immediately before the mass arrival of migrants.

A key piece of evidence in the investigation

The case has placed the communication between Ceuta and Madrid under renewed scrutiny. Vivas's testimony suggests that the autonomous government repeatedly sought a stronger response before the border situation escalated, while Moncloa maintains that its communication channels were functioning and that requests were being handled through the relevant government departments.

The call records requested by the judge could help establish the precise sequence of events and determine which version is supported by the available evidence.

For now, the court's intervention does not resolve the dispute. It signals instead that the communications exchanged in the crucial days before July 30 will form an important part of the effort to reconstruct how the authorities handled the unfolding crisis.