The Minister of Territorial Policy and Democratic Memory, Ángel Víctor Torres, has insisted that, in the days prior to July 30, the date on which the massive entry of immigrants into Ceuta from the border with Morocco occurred, "there was no communication" that "tens of thousands of people" were going to access the autonomous city.
With these words, Torres aligns himself with the version of the Minister of the Interior, Fernando Grande-Marlaska, who in the press conference following the Council of Ministers emphasized that the Government did not receive "any report" from the National Intelligence Center (CNI) regarding the massive entry of migrants into Ceuta, since, had they had that information, the Executive would have implemented extraordinary measures to try to prevent it.
His statements come after the Minister of Defense, Margarita Robles, stated in the Defense Commission of Congress that the CNI agents fulfilled their duty in the days leading up to the crisis in Ceuta, that they monitored the situation and that they sent their analyses to both the Security Forces and the Government Delegation, which was aware that a swimming entry was called due to the Moroccan holiday.
For the head of Territorial Policy, Marlaska was "clear" in his explanations, as the situation in Ceuta is "reported" daily, where "there had been an increase of about a thousand people in seven days," but "in no case was there any communication that we were going to have an arrival of tens of thousands of people."
"He was clear in his statement and I believe it was a practically 'in situ' response to what the minister's intervention was," he pointed out in an interview on "Cadena Ser," reported by Europa Press.
"Own reflection" of Robles and crisis management
In relation to the words of the Minister of Defense, who admitted in parliamentary session that they "had arrived late" in Ceuta, Torres has interpreted these statements as part of "an own reflection" of Robles. Nevertheless, he has acknowledged that, regarding the management of the crisis, "things can always be improved."
At the same time, he has emphasized that "it is not easy" to face "a crisis of this magnitude" and has defended that the Government is acting "with the greatest effort" and dedicating itself "to try to achieve that normality."