Irregular land entries into Ceuta more than tripled in the first five and a half months of 2026, even as migrant arrivals fell sharply across Spain, according to June data from the Spanish Interior Ministry.
A total of 2,493 people entered the Spanish enclave by land between January 1 and June 15, up 215% from 791 during the same period last year.
Overall irregular arrivals to Spain fell 36% to 10,701, while maritime arrivals in the Canary Islands dropped 71% to 3,267.
The Western Mediterranean route was the only major European corridor to record an increase in the first five months of 2026, with detections rising 46% to about 7,100, according to Frontex.
The EU border agency said the increase was driven mainly by departures from Algeria, as tighter controls in Morocco and on neighbouring routes pushed smuggling activity towards Algerian shores.
Morocco has strengthened migration cooperation with Spain since the two countries repaired diplomatic relations in 2022.
Morocco’s Interior Ministry prevented 73,640 irregular migration attempts in 2025, down 6.4% from a year earlier, and dismantled more than 300 smuggling networks.
A senior ministry official told Reuters the lower interception figure did not mean migration pressure was declining, warning that the phenomenon showed “no sign of easing” as migrants shifted to other departure points.
Ceuta had already recorded 3,523 irregular land entries in 2025, up 39.2% from the previous year.
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