A wave of misleading social media posts contributed to a mass migrant crossing from Morocco to Spain's North African enclave of Ceuta last month, with at least 90 people reportedly dying, most of them by drowning. False claims circulated on Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, TikTok and Telegram, creating the impression that Spain had relaxed its migration rules and that migrants who reached Ceuta by sea would be allowed to remain. The misinformation was amplified by groups linked to people-smuggling networks seeking to attract migrants attempting to reach Europe.
The rumours intensified after a video posted by local newspaper El Faro de Ceuta on TikTok and Instagram on July 28 showed two young women walking through Ceuta wearing wetsuits and appearing to have wet hair. The post was interpreted differently when shared in Arabic, with some viewers believing it showed people who had recently swum from Morocco and were able to move freely around the Spanish territory. The women were seen smiling and making gestures such as thumbs-up and peace signs, adding to the misleading interpretation of the footage.
The misinformation was also linked to a previous Supreme Court ruling concerning a migrant who had reached Ceuta by sea. The court had not granted migrants an automatic right to remain in the enclave but ruled that people entering through open water without crossing a physical border barrier were entitled to judicial review before authorities decided whether they could be expelled. The ruling was subsequently distorted online, with some posts falsely claiming that migrants who swam into Ceuta could not be deported. At least 215 Facebook accounts reportedly circulated an identical false claim about the court decision.
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People-smuggling networks also used social media and messaging platforms to provide potential migrants with practical information about reaching Ceuta. Facebook and WhatsApp groups reportedly shared maps, transport details, equipment suggestions and guidance on reaching areas near the border. One Facebook group was connected to a WhatsApp group called "the path to Ceuta", while another account described Ceuta as an "open gate". The misinformation reached large audiences, including through an account belonging to Youssef Belhaissi, a spokesman for Morocco's Inter-ministerial Delegation for Human Rights, who has around 1.3 million followers.
One migrant, Achraf Ben Ahmed, said he travelled by train from central Morocco before buying a wetsuit and fins and swimming around 12 kilometres to reach Ceuta on July 29. He said social media videos had convinced him that migrants would receive assistance and would not be sent back. After arriving, he hid in a forested area and entered the city only to obtain food. Migration expert Jorgen Carling said the court ruling, although unrelated to the claims being circulated, provided a "kernel of truth" that made the rumours appear credible to people considering the journey.
Meta, the parent company of Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp, said it created a team to monitor the situation and removed posts that violated its rules. Researchers, however, said some accounts and groups remained online, with several later being used by families searching for relatives missing after the crossings. The episode highlights how misleading information can spread rapidly during migration crises, particularly when false claims are mixed with fragments of genuine legal information and amplified by networks offering practical guidance to people seeking to reach Europe.
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