Recently, the organization Hatze Oír lodged a formal complaint with the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague, Netherlands, against the Kingdom of Morocco and Fouad Ali El Himma, a chief advisor to King Mohammed VI. The complaint asserts that there is reasonable ground to believe that Moroccan authorities deliberately conceived, ordered, promoted, or consented to the coercive and massive displacement of tens of thousands of civilians, including many minors, across an international border via a perilous maritime route. This led to over eighty confirmed deaths and an undetermined number of missing persons, allegedly aimed at destabilizing and coercing the Kingdom of Spain. Such actions could constitute crimes against humanity under Article 7 of the Rome Statute, including murder, forced deportation or transfer of populations, persecution, and other inhumane acts.
The complainants highlight that the invasion of Ceuta occurred amid rising tensions between Spain and Morocco, coinciding with the Throne Day celebrations that commemorate the enthronement of the Alaouite monarch every July 30. They reference a notable precedent from May 2021, during which between eight thousand and twelve thousand individuals entered Ceuta under similar circumstances, widely interpreted as a diplomatic pressure tactic. This precedent made both the operational methods and their lethal outcomes entirely foreseeable.
Additionally, it has been documented that Spanish government analysis services possessed information regarding hybrid threats warning of potential migratory waves used as an instrument of pressure against Spain. On August 4, the Interior Minister denied that the National Intelligence Center had alerted about the operation. The tension between the declared general foreseeability and the absence of specific alerts is one of the issues that a fair investigation should clarify.
In detailing the events, the association specifies that the mass entry did not occur unexpectedly, but rather followed a sustained and publicly known escalation. During the week ending July 27, over a thousand people entered Ceuta, and in the fifteen days leading up to July 29, approximately fifteen hundred individuals crossed, with daily peaks exceeding two hundred, as reported by official publications and the press at that time.
On July 29, the Autonomous City announced that it was caring for 570 unaccompanied foreign minors—102 of whom arrived within just twenty-four hours—compared to around 180 ten days prior, representing an occupancy rate of 1,600% of its ordinary reception capacity, with the situation officially deemed critical.
Evidence Against Morocco
Among the evidence presented in the complaint is a technical report from the open-source analysis firm Golden Owl, titled “The Ceuta Mobilisation Network: Recruitment, Amplification and Operational Security,” released in early August 2026. The report describes a coordinated campaign, conducted approximately between July 24 and 30, under the name “Karyaj assault to Ceuta,” which involved at least twenty-five active Facebook accounts with a declared audience of over one million followers, private messaging channels, recruitment quotas, and operational security instructions for participants.
The complainants also state that accounts specifically dedicated to the call for action were identified, including “@haragaa_ceuta1,” “@ceu.ta_haraga,” and “Haraga El Ghorba,” among others, alongside at least five Facebook groups totaling over 250,000 members and WhatsApp groups—“Hijma Kiraj Sebta” and “Hijma”—that disseminated schedules, meeting points, maps, itineraries, and maritime routes.
On July 30 and the early hours of July 31, tens of thousands of people—predominantly young Moroccan men, with significant numbers of minors, pregnant women, and lactating mothers—crossed the border simultaneously, swimming from Fnideq (Castillejos) over a distance of about five kilometers or from Belyounech, navigating around the Tarajal and Benzú breakwaters.
Hazte Oír maintains that Spanish agents reported the “negligence” of Moroccan authorities in the early hours of the event; the Unified Association of Civil Guards echoed this sentiment. The local newspaper El Faro de Ceuta documented Moroccan military personnel encouraging crossings and concluded that, without the inaction of Moroccan forces, the mass crossings would not have been possible. The New York Times reported testimonies from Moroccan nationals stating that their own authorities directed them toward the border. The Daily Telegraph, citing Western intelligence sources, attributed the deliberate facilitation of the crossings to the highest levels of the Moroccan Kingdom as a diplomatic reprisal against Spain.
Furthermore, the complaint asserts that, according to information from sources within the Civil Guard, real-time monitoring of the perimeter camera network identified Moroccan intelligence agents infiltrated among those crossing since the early hours of July 30. Reports citing Civil Guard sources place the ultimate order within the realm of advisor Fouad Ali El Himma.
In light of all this, the Spanish association calls for the investigation to focus on determining the responsibility of: (i) the Moroccan authorities with decision-making capacity over the border apparatus in the Fnideq-Belyounech sector from July 29 to 31, 2026; (ii) the commanders of the Royal Gendarmerie and Auxiliary Forces stationed in that sector; (iii) those responsible for the intelligence services whose agents were identified among those crossing; (iv) individuals within the Royal House from whom, according to information provided by Spanish Civil Guard sources, the ultimate order allegedly originated, particularly advisor Fouad Ali El Himma; and (v) the administrators, promoters, financiers, and coordinators of the social media campaign, including any potential links to state structures. Regarding individuals mentioned in the Iustitia Europa communication, their examination will only proceed if legally obtained evidence establishes decision, order, contribution, or knowledge.
As reported by moncloa.com.
