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MADRID: Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez on Monday dismissed as Netflix-worthy allegations he was being blackmailed by Morocco over the migration crisis in Spain\u2019s North African territory of Ceuta.<\/p>\n
Since over 70,000 migrants streamed into the Spanish enclave from Morocco at the end of July, Sanchez has maintained he has no \u201csolid proof\u201d that Rabat planned the rush \u2014 something that has not convinced opposition parties or public opinion.<\/p>\n
Allegations picked up by the right-wing Popular Party and its leader Alberto Nu\u00f1ez Feijoo have suggested that Sanchez is reluctant to confront Morocco over the surge because Rabat may be blackmailing him with information obtained by hacking one of his phones.<\/p>\n
\u201cRelations between countries, and particularly with neighbors, must be based on respect and on facts, not on wild speculation or contempt,\u201d Sanchez said on Monday evening.<\/p>\n
\u201cThese false reports circulating about the mobile phone or other matters \u2014 well, perhaps for a Netflix series they\u2019re great, but reality must be built on facts and not on false news,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cI have never said that we would not respond firmly to Morocco if it is proven that Morocco…is behind what happened on July 30 and 31,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut as of today… there is no information that solidly establishes Morocco\u2019s responsibility for the wave we faced on July 31.\u201d<\/p>\n
The majority of the migrants who entered Ceuta on July 30 and 31 returned to Morocco within hours of their arrival.<\/p>\n
Several thousand, however, have remained in Ceuta, where the situation has since deteriorated, leading to episodes of violence and almost daily demonstrations by the local population.<\/p>\n
The government has had to identify the thousands of migrants who have remained for weeks to determine if they are entitled to asylum, while unaccompanied children cannot be summarily deported.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n