Spain is reinforcing the Tarajal border in Ceuta ahead of a possible mass entry attempt on 23 September. Morocco has told Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares it will take the necessary measures to stop the crossing, after calls on social media urged people to enter the Spanish city again.
The extra deployment includes 63 Guardia Civil officers from the Grupo de Reserva y Seguridad (GRS), organized into three units of 21 agents. The force will also double its use of drones and helicopters to monitor the frontier and nearby waters.
External sources estimate that roughly 70,000 to 80,000 people entered during the mass episode of 30-31 July, although figures vary by source.
The total Guardia Civil presence in Ceuta will rise to 706 officers, including 195 reinforcements assigned to the operation.
The land border is not the only concern. Severe weather damaged a floating buoy barrier installed after the previous mass entry. It now has gaps of up to 50 metres and can no longer be considered an effective physical obstacle for people trying to swim into Spanish territory.
Interior is preparing for a possible attempt by sea as well as through the Tarajal crossing. The operation comes as Morocco holds elections this Wednesday, adding sensitivity to the security planning without changing the deployment's stated purpose.
Morocco has also tightened control on its side of the Tarajal crossing. Spanish and regional reports describe a new door or related changes tied to the procedure for refusing voluntary returns, adding another complication to the border flow.
Albares has been in direct contact with his Moroccan counterpart, Naser Burita, and is due to meet him in New York this week. They are expected to discuss the return of migrants still in Ceuta after the mass entry on 30 July.
Spain says Rabat has assured it that the necessary steps will be taken to prevent a repeat. EFE reports that the planned discussion forms part of wider diplomatic coordination, not a joint Spanish-Moroccan operation.
The minister has also urged the Moroccan press to explain that anyone entering Ceuta will not be able to stay in Spain indefinitely. He warned against false claims that reaching Ceuta or Melilla gives people automatic access to Europe or a permanent right to remain in either city.
Ministry sources say the online calls for 23 September have gained little traction. Authorities are still mounting a preventive response because waiting for a confirmed attempt would leave little time to act at the border.
The government is pairing diplomatic pressure with surveillance and extra personnel, rather than relying on the damaged maritime barrier alone. RTVE has described the measures as preventive and reported that monitoring covers the land frontier and nearby waters.
The preparations follow an earlier operation in which 90% of those who entered on 30 July returned to Morocco within 48 hours. Albares has said inequality between the two sides of the border is the deeper problem. He has also argued that Spain records the best return rates in the European Union.
The latest details appeared in earlier coverage of the preparations.
For Ceuta, the immediate challenge is to monitor land and sea while the floating barrier remains partly unusable. Madrid is treating cooperation from Rabat as the first line of prevention, but that cooperation cannot replace Spanish controls.
The deployment of 63 extra officers and increased aerial monitoring shows that authorities are preparing for a possibility; it does not mean a new crossing has taken place. No new mass entry has been reported. Moroccan assurances remain the basic preventive commitment, while the damaged barrier and the need for 195 reinforcements show the limits of physical infrastructure alone.
