Thousands rally across Spain for Ceuta as Costa towns join national show of support

Over 50,000 individuals gathered in Madrid on Wednesday to express support for Ceuta, a Spanish city on the North African coast, amid growing political turmoil resulting from mass border crossings earlier this month. The demonstration came just a month after an estimated 72,000 migrants crossed into Ceuta from Morocco, causing significant strain on the city's resources and resources of the Spanish government.

The Spanish Federation of Municipalities and Provinces (FEMP) organized the rallies across the country, urging local governments to showcase solidarity with Ceuta. The People's Party (PP) and far-right Vox party backed the initiative, while the socialist-led government criticized it as a partisan political campaign.

This year, Ceuta Day, the city's annual holiday, was overshadowed by nationwide protests demanding a response to the crisis. Ceuta's residents, who have been demonstrating since the influx, chanted slogans expressing their unity and determination to defend their territory. The regional president, Juan Jesús Vivas, emphasized that the crisis was not a migratory issue but a violation of Spain's territorial integrity.

In Madrid, opposition leaders, including PP leader Alberto Núñez Feijóo and Vox leader Santiago Abascal, joined the demonstrations, accusing the national government of being more aligned with Morocco than with Spain. Feijóo and Abascal called Sánchez a "dangerous psychopath" and accused him of lying to the Spanish public. The government responded by allocating €309 million in assistance to Ceuta.