Tens of thousands of people participated in demonstrations across Spain this week to express solidarity with the North African enclave of Ceuta and to criticize the central government’s management of a large-scale migrant influx that began in late July. The rallies, called by the Spanish Federation of Municipalities and Provinces, took place on Ceuta Day and occurred in the enclave itself as well as in Madrid, Barcelona, Valencia, Seville, Zaragoza, Bilbao and numerous other cities.
The protests follow a massive invasion of the enclave in late July. Between July 30 and 31, authorities recorded approximately 72,000 people crossing from Morocco into Ceuta, a territory of about 80,000–84,000 residents. Far-left Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez has claimed that the majority of the illegal aliens returned since then, though thousands have remained.
Clashes have been recorded between Spanish nationalists and the illegal alien invaders, a number of whom have been living in makeshift tents along the enclave’s beaches and in cities.
Crowd estimates for the 2 September events varied. Government figures put attendance in Madrid at about 50,000, while Madrid City Council estimated 150,000. Additional estimates cited roughly 20,000 participants in Ceuta and 25,000 in Valencia, with smaller gatherings elsewhere.
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BREAKING:
Mass-protests in Madrid tonight as Spaniards take to the streets across the country against illegal migration and the invasion of Ceuta.
— Visegrád 24 (@visegrad24) September 2, 2026
There are MILLIONS on the streets in Spain right now demanding Pedro Sánchez resign over the invasion of Ceuta.
You won’t see this in the legacy media. pic.twitter.com/S7t3saSFhP
— Inevitable West (@Inevitablewest) September 2, 2026
Demonstrators carried Spanish and Ceuta flags and used slogans such as “Ceuta is not for sale, Ceuta must be defended.” Some signs and chants called for the remaining migrants to be returned to their countries of origin or redistributed and for Sánchez to resign.
Opposition leaders Alberto Núñez Feijóo of the People’s Party and Santiago Abascal of Vox attended the Madrid event separately, as did Madrid regional president Isabel Díaz Ayuso. After the main Madrid rally, police used crowd-control measures when a smaller group moved toward Congress.
Opposition politicians argued that the government had left Ceuta insufficiently supported and questioned whether Spanish authorities had received prior indications of a possible surge. A National Police report submitted to investigators suggested Moroccan security forces may have shown permissiveness or guided movement toward the border
Sánchez’s government stated it had no evidence that Morocco planned or executed the crossings and attributed the event in part to trafficking networks and online misinformation. Sánchez addressed Parliament on 3 September, saying the state’s response remained insufficient until normality returned and that additional resources would be deployed. He rejected claims that the government had advance knowledge and took no action.
Sánchez has previously declined calls to resign over separate corruption investigations involving associates and family members, and is refusing to resign amid the current protests as well.
