Spain deports African and Asian asylum seekers to Morocco amid rights outcry

On October 26, 2026, Spain deported over a dozen sub-Saharan African and Asian migrants from Ceuta to Morocco following rejected asylum applications, marking the first such returns since July's mass crossing of 80,000 people. Human rights groups, including Amnesty International, strongly condemned the actions, arguing Morocco fails to uphold human rights. Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez faces intense EU and domestic pressure to resolve the crisis ahead of Spain's November 29 elections.

Ceuta deportations to Morocco

• ▪Rights charities operating in Ceuta reported that 16 rejected asylum seekers from Senegal, Nigeria, Yemen, Cameroon, and Bangladesh were deported to Morocco
• ▪Spain's Interior Ministry stated that the Oct. 26 deportations of migrants from Ceuta to Morocco adhere to European Union safe-country standards and are executed with all necessary safeguards
• ▪Spain returned more than a dozen sub-Saharan African and Asian asylum seekers from Ceuta to Morocco, marking the enclave's first such deportation since July 2026

Mass border crossing crisis

• ▪Spanish authorities reported that more than 13,000 migrants have voluntarily returned to Morocco from Ceuta since mid-August 2026
• ▪Spanish authorities house 8,000 migrants in reception centres in Ceuta while processing pending asylum applications
• ▪In July 2026, approximately 80,000 migrants crossed from Morocco into the Spanish enclave of Ceuta within a 48-hour period

NGO criticism of deportations

• ▪Non-governmental organizations filed complaints with the Spanish ombudsman alleging that some migrants reported as returning voluntarily to Morocco since mid-August 2026 were forcibly expelled
• ▪Amnesty International researcher Virginia Alvarez accused Spain of hypocritical policy, asserting that human rights guarantees are not met for migrants crossing into Ceuta and Melilla

Morocco migrant treatment concerns

• ▪Human rights organizations warned that deporting non-Moroccan asylum seekers ignores safety risks linked to Morocco's treatment of foreign migrants
• ▪Neither Morocco's Interior Ministry nor the International Organization for Migration responded to requests for comment regarding the Oct. 26 deportations of third-country migrants from Ceuta