Intelligence reports show Moroccan warships entered Ceuta waters as a deliberate show of force

A recent intelligence assessment authored by Chema Gil concludes that Moroccan warships deliberately entered Spanish sovereign waters around Ceuta during the ongoing invasion, reflecting coordinated land and maritime actions. The brief notes that a frigate and multiple patrol boats crossed the border without authorization, a move that, according to the analyst, could only have been ordered by Morocco's senior military leadership.

The timing overlapped with tens of thousands of migrants attempting to reach the city by land and sea, raising the crisis to the upper edge of the hybrid-war gray zone. The Spanish government responded by sending the maritime action ship Rayo and the frigate Santa María, which arrived in early August to support marine infantry, while Spanish aircraft maintained surveillance. High-level diplomatic contacts were made with Rabat, after which the naval entries ceased. The analyst warns that the most serious risk in the coming year is an unintended clash between the two nations' forces in the constrained maritime environment.