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A BBC investigation uncovered multiple Instagram accounts that charge migrants 5,000 Moroccan dirhams, roughly £400, for instructions on entering Ceuta from Morocco, including routes through sewer pipes that the profiles claim have helped many people. The accounts often initiate contact through direct messages after users engage with their content and then shift conversations to WhatsApp or email for payment details via bank transfer. Several profiles added disclaimers stating they do not encourage immigration yet continued to post promotional material for further attempts, according to the BBC reporting. When pressed on refunds for unsuccessful crossings the accounts deleted messages and some profiles disappeared after the outlet contacted Meta.
Spanish officials recorded around 50,000 migrant arrivals into Ceuta in late July 2026 with the local government estimating the total reached 60,000 in a matter of days, Reuters reported on July 31. The majority, approximately 48,300, returned to Morocco voluntarily within 48 hours as controls were reinstated, according to the Spanish Interior Ministry. At least 57 migrants died during the attempts through drowning or stampedes, the Associated Press stated, while other tallies placed the death toll higher when including incidents on the Moroccan side.
Disinformation about a Spanish Supreme Court ruling that supposedly prevented immediate returns for sea arrivals spread across Instagram, TikTok and Facebook in the weeks before the surge, a New York Times analysis published on August 11 found. Accounts such as Haraga Ceuta and Hagra sueta 26, the latter boasting 80,000 Instagram followers, posted aspirational videos of swimmers and life in the enclave that often misrepresented original footage or used AI-generated material, Al Jazeera detailed in its August 5 report. These posts directed followers to larger groups sharing logistics on departure points and border weaknesses while building momentum from early June.
The network of nearly 40 profiles frequently incorporated variations of the term “Haraga” in usernames alongside Spanish flags and regional calling codes, with many appearing to operate from Morocco though some showed links to Spain or Italy, the BBC investigation determined. Content was designed to trigger strong reactions to game platform algorithms and flood the feeds of potential migrants, a tactic that insiders from social media companies had previously flagged as effective for virality. Similar monitoring by Spanish police has identified ongoing campaigns on Facebook and Instagram urging another coordinated crossing on August 15, CBS News reported last week.
Meta said it maintains a team observing the Ceuta developments in real time and removes material that offers or facilitates human smuggling services. The company took down several accounts after being alerted to their activity promoting paid advice. Moroccan authorities deployed additional security to deter further gatherings while noting that around 40,000 people had headed toward Ceuta during the peak period, according to data released by Morocco World News.
The events recall a 2021 crisis in which more than 10,000 migrants crossed into Ceuta over two days after Moroccan border guards eased controls, creating diplomatic friction between Madrid and Rabat that the New York Times referenced in its coverage. Crossings to Ceuta and nearby Melilla had already risen sharply this year compared with annual totals below 1,000 in 2023, 2024 and 2025, BBC Verify noted citing UN migration data. Economic pressures in origin regions combined with the online rumors to accelerate participation, a Reuters dispatch from early August concluded.
