Spanish PM says disinformation on Ceuta crisis was spread by Russia, Israel

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez has accused Russia and Israel of spreading disinformation about the recent influx of migrants into Spain's Ceuta enclave, according to research by the European Union's foreign service. The crisis, which saw over 72,000 migrants enter Ceuta last month, prompted tensions within the European Union and fueled anti-immigration rhetoric worldwide. At least 96 people perished in the attempt to reach European soil.

CAM's Antisemitism Research Center (ARC) monitored 173 high-impact posts on X, published by 119 influencer accounts, in the three days following the migrant surge. These posts collectively garnered 57.5 million views, 1.9 million likes, and 368,400 shares, reaching an estimated 103.1 million people. The posts primarily focused on conspiratorial antisemitic tropes, portraying Israel and Jewish people as the architects of a supposed plot to destabilize Europe.

Sanchez stated that the dissemination of these disinformation narratives was an attempt to criticize the Spanish government, as the countries are at odds over their positions on the wars in Ukraine and the Middle East. CAM CEO Sacha Roytman emphasized that this situation is not an isolated incident but rather a result of a platform that rewards the quickest and most inflammatory explanations, which increasingly take the form of Jewish conspiracies.