The crisis of sub-Saharan immigrants in Ceuta has uncovered the true intentions of Morocco. Ceuta and Melilla have been part of Spain for about 500 years. However, for Rabat, these territories would continue to be part of Morocco.
In this sense, Morocco maintains a historical claim over Ceuta and Melilla, but Spain exercises effective, continued, and integrated sovereignty over both in its constitutional order.
The scenario has acquired a new dimension due to signals coming from the United States. A report approved in April by the House Appropriations Committee classified Ceuta and Melilla as cities "administered by Spain" located in "Moroccan territory" and supported that the State Department promote a dialogue between Madrid and Rabat about their future.
Two cities with a history predating the current States
Ceuta and Melilla did not arise as colonial enclaves during the European partition of Africa. Both have an urban history that dates back to antiquity and have passed through Phoenician, Carthaginian, Roman, Byzantine, Muslim, and Christian hands.
The strategic position of Ceuta, located next to the Strait of Gibraltar, favored the settlement of different civilizations from a very early stage. During the Roman era, it was known as Septem Fratres, a name linked to the elevations surrounding the city. It was later integrated into the Islamic world and was subjected to various North African powers and dynasties.
Melilla emerged between the 7th and 6th centuries before Christ as Rusaddir, a Phoenician foundation that became a commercial port and a connection point with the Amazigh communities of the interior. Later, it became linked to Carthage and the Roman world before transforming into the Islamic city of Malila.
Ceuta: Portuguese since 1415 and Spanish since 1668
On August 21, 1415, the troops of King John I of Portugal conquered Ceuta. The operation, considered one of the first episodes of Portuguese overseas expansion, turned the city into a strategic base to control the Strait and North African trade routes.
When the crowns of Spain and Portugal were united under the same monarch between 1580 and 1640, Ceuta remained administratively linked to Portugal, although under the Hispanic Monarchy. After the restoration of Portuguese independence, the city decided to remain linked to the Spanish Crown.
The Treaty of Lisbon of 1668, through which Spain recognized the independence of Portugal, formally confirmed Spanish sovereignty over Ceuta. The city had then been under Iberian rule for more than two centuries.
Melilla: under Spanish sovereignty since 1497
Melilla came under the power of the Crown of Castile on September 17, 1497, when an expedition led by Pedro de Estopiñán, in the service of the Duke of Medina Sidonia and with the authorization of the Catholic Monarchs, took possession of the place without bloodshed.
The House of Medina Sidonia initially assumed its administration and defense, although the Crown participated in its financing. In 1556, during the reign of Philip II, the city was fully incorporated into the Crown. Melilla remained Spanish throughout the subsequent period of European expansion over Morocco.
Morocco did not start from scratch in 1956
History does not allow us to simply state that Ceuta and Melilla were Spanish "before Morocco existed." The Moroccan territory had previous political formations, and the official historiography of Rabat places the origin of its Islamic state tradition in the Idrisid dynasty, established since the year 788.
Then came the Almoravids, Almohads, Benimerines, Saadians, and Alaouites. The current Alaouite dynasty consolidated its power over Morocco starting in 1666 and continues to reign today.
What was born in 1956 was contemporary Morocco as a newly independent state, after the end of the French and Spanish protectorates. Ceuta and Melilla were not part of the territory of the Spanish Protectorate returned to Rabat: they were previous Spanish possessions and were expressly excluded from that process.
The treaties that speak of "Spanish plazas"
The Spanish position does not rest solely on historical occupation. The Treaty of Peace and Friendship signed between Spain and Morocco in 1860 expressly refers to the "Spanish plazas of Ceuta and Melilla" and regulates their limits, neutral zones, and relations with the surrounding Moroccan territory.
The text also obliged the Moroccan sultan to place authorities and troops at the borders to prevent attacks against the cities. This language constitutes one of the main Spanish arguments, as it shows that the Moroccan sovereign himself legally treated both plazas as Spanish territories.
Morocco requested in 1975 that Ceuta, Melilla, and other Spanish possessions be incorporated into the list of non-self-governing territories of the United Nations. The initiative did not lead to their inclusion and neither of the two cities is among the 17 territories that the UN currently considers pending decolonization.
Since 1995, the Statutes of Autonomy define Ceuta and Melilla as an integral part of the Spanish nation. Its citizens participate in Spanish elections, elect representatives to the Cortes, and are fully subject to the national and European legal system.
The pressure from Washington and the precedent of the Sahara
The Spanish concern regarding the American signals is explained by the precedent of Western Sahara. In December 2020, Donald Trump unilaterally recognized Moroccan sovereignty over all Sahrawi territory, a decision that his Administration has reaffirmed in 2026.
The report from the House of Representatives represents a distinct political step: it speaks of the "future status" of Ceuta and Melilla and presents sovereignty as a negotiable issue. However, it is neither a presidential declaration nor a binding decision from the State Department.
In fact, the official U.S. administrative position continues to indicate that Ceuta and Melilla belong to Spain. The State Department's consular manual orders to list "Spain" as the country of birth for those born in both cities, while its official travel information describes them as Spanish autonomous enclaves in Africa.
Pressure exists, therefore, but it is still concentrated in sectors of Congress and in the strategic environment close to Morocco. Rabat has a political and historical claim, but not a recognized international title that displaces the sovereignty exercised by Spain, backed by centuries of administration, bilateral treaties, and full constitutional integration.