Israel and Russia Spread Migration Hoaxes: Spanish PM Sánchez

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez has blamed Russian and Israeli-linked social networks for deliberately amplifying false claims surrounding the July 30–31 migrant surge in an effort to destabilize Spain and deepen divisions across Europe.

Sánchez said the campaign was reinforced by an international far right that uses migration as a political instrument against Madrid and European governments.

Sánchez Cites EU External Action Service

The Spanish prime minister said the European Union’s External Action Service had identified Russian and Israeli networks as participants in the spread of the claims.

“The European External Action Service of the European Commission has said there were indeed Russian and Israeli networks that spread these hoaxes and attacked the Spanish government and European governments on a very corrosive topic like the fight against irregular migration,” Sánchez said.

He argued that migration had become particularly effective terrain for political interference because it “divides and polarizes many European societies”.

“I'm not saying it, the European Union's External Action Service is saying it,” he added.

Madrid Links Disinformation to Foreign Policy

Sánchez connected the alleged information campaign to Spain’s positions on Gaza and Ukraine rather than to concerns about migration itself.

“If Russia gets involved in spreading disinformation, or Israel also spreads disinformation by criticizing the Spanish government, it won't be because they are concerned about migration, but because of the political positions we are taking regarding the genocide in Gaza or Putin's invasion of Ukraine.”

His remarks placed the migration dispute within a broader confrontation over Spain’s foreign policy and its criticism of both Moscow and Israel.

Sánchez Pushes Back Against Migrant Stigmatization

The prime minister also criticized political movements that portray migrants as a security threat.

He said some political forces were stigmatizing migrants and presenting them as potential criminals, while arguing that criminality was not unique to migrant populations.

“Crime exists among migrants, but it also exists among native-born people in the countries that receive that migration,” Sánchez said.

At the same time, he framed migration as an economic necessity for Spain.

“We do in fact need migrants, we need workers, for an economy that is growing four times faster than the eurozone.”

Morocco Cooperation Seen As Essential

Sánchez said Spain could not manage migration pressures without coordination with Morocco.

“If there is no cooperation with Morocco, this crisis will not be solved. On the contrary, it will get worse.”

His comments underline Madrid’s reliance on cross-border cooperation as part of its approach to irregular migration.

Call for European Solidarity

Sánchez also called for a broader European response, arguing that states on the bloc’s external frontiers should not be left to manage migration pressures alone.

“Europe must show solidarity. It was born to be based on solidarity, and it has to show solidarity in Lampedusa, in Greenland and in Ceuta.”

The Spanish leader’s central argument is that migration has become both a domestic political fault line and a target for foreign influence operations intended to intensify divisions inside Europe.