--- title: "Santiago Abascal says Pedro Sánchez is deliberately abandoning Ceuta to Morocco" publication: "MediaBias News" url: "https://mediabias.news/politics/santiago-abascal-says-pedro-sanchez-is-deliberately-abandoning-ceuta-to-morocco" api: "https://mediabias.news/api/v1/stories/santiago-abascal-says-pedro-sanchez-is-deliberately-abandoning-ceuta-to-morocco" markdown: "https://mediabias.news/politics/santiago-abascal-says-pedro-sanchez-is-deliberately-abandoning-ceuta-to-morocco.md" audio: "https://mediabias.news/api/audio/santiago-abascal-says-pedro-sanchez-is-deliberately-abandoning-ceuta-to-morocco" category: "Politics" area: "European Union" published: "2026-08-16T18:26:07.853Z" source_reported: "2026-08-16T17:16:21.000Z" updated: "2026-08-16T18:26:07.853Z" trust_score: 68 critic_score: 87 hype_score: 35 assessment_type: "coverage-and-source-reporting-analysis" fact_check_status: "not-performed" coverage_measured: "2026-08-16T18:15:12.990996+00:00" --- # Santiago Abascal says Pedro Sánchez is deliberately abandoning Ceuta to Morocco *Vox leader calls the Spanish prime minister a traitor and demands a coalition government in Ceuta to stop the migration crisis* **Scores for the source reporting** (0-100, assessing the original journalism this article was written from, not this write-up): - Trust 68 of 100, higher is better. Trust 68 because two independent outlets name Abascal's X post and include specific persons, but no documents or sourced figures. - Craft 87 of 100, higher is better. Critic 87 as reports quote key speakers, give dates, names, and explain the political context. - Hype 35 of 100, lower is better. Hype 35; language is strong but story mainly relays statements without added sensational framing. Scored by MediaBias News; method at https://mediabias.news/methodology. **The short version** - Santiago Abascal posted on X accusing Pedro Sánchez of deliberately abandoning Ceuta to demoralise its residents and enable a handover to Morocco. - Abascal called Sánchez a traitor and said he should go to jail over the migration crisis in Ceuta, as reported by Europa Press and La Razón. - Vox’s Ceuta leader demanded the PP form a coalition government in Ceuta and blamed the city’s president for supporting Sánchez’s policies. - Right-rated outlets led on Abascal’s accusation and the migration surge, while no left-rated outlet ran the story. Santiago Abascal, leader of the Spanish party Vox, accused Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez of deliberately abandoning Ceuta to demoralise its inhabitants and facilitate a handover of the city to Morocco. Abascal posted the accusation on X on 16 August 2026, as reported by Europa Press and La Razón. He called Sánchez a traitor and said he should be jailed for his handling of the migration crisis in Ceuta. Abascal also called for a "hygienic cordon" against the PSOE, Sánchez’s party, and urged other parties to abandon the government. Juan Sergio Redondo, Vox’s leader in Ceuta, demanded that the Partido Popular (PP) form a coalition government with Vox in Ceuta. Redondo blamed Juan Jesús Vivas, Ceuta’s president, for supporting Sánchez’s policies and called for an end to his agreements with the PSOE and the local party Movimiento por la Dignidad y la Ciudadanía (MDyC). ## What the coverage left out No left-rated outlet ran the story at all. None of the right-rated digests mentioned Redondo’s demand for control of Ceuta’s health and governance departments, which La Razón’s full report carried. The centre-rated report by Europa Press did not include the figure of 80,000 illegal immigrants reported by Libertad Digital’s digest. ## Who covered it Shares of the 6 covering outlets with a published leaning rating: - Left: 0% (0) - Centre: 17% (1) - Right: 83% (5) 4 of 10 covering outlets carried no usable leaning rating and were excluded from those percentages. Coverage measured 2026-08-16T18:15:12.990996+00:00. **Coverage watch:** developing. Checked 4 times; 0 checks found a material change. Most recently checked 2026-08-16T19:15:08.866Z. ## How the sides framed it ### Left No separate framing summary. ### Centre - The centre-rated report by Europa Press led on Abascal’s accusation that Sánchez was deliberately abandoning Ceuta to demoralise its inhabitants and facilitate a handover to Morocco. It carried Abascal’s statement that Sánchez should be jailed for the migration crisis and Redondo’s demand for a coalition government in Ceuta. The report did not include the figure of 80,000 illegal immigrants cited by Libertad Digital’s digest. ### Right - All five right-rated digests led on Abascal’s accusation that Sánchez was abandoning Ceuta to facilitate a handover to Morocco. La Razón’s full report quoted Abascal calling Sánchez a traitor and demanding his imprisonment, and it carried Redondo’s demand for a coalition government in Ceuta. Libertad Digital’s digest reported that more than 80,000 illegal immigrants had arrived from Morocco, a figure not mentioned in the centre-rated report or La Razón’s full article. - La Razón’s report quoted Abascal’s phrase "desmoralizar a los ceutíes para que acaben tirando la toalla" ("demoralise the Ceutis so they end up throwing in the towel") and Redondo’s description of Vivas’s agreements with the PSOE and MDyC as a "partido islamista" ("Islamist party"). The digests did not carry these specific wordings. **Provisional coverage gap:** left. The watch is not closed, so this is not yet a settled blindspot finding. ## Factuality profile of the covering outlets These are published factuality ratings of the outlets, not a verdict on whether this story or its claims are true. - high: 2 - unknown: 8 ## Verification scope This page compares coverage and scores the source reporting. It is not a ClaimReview verdict on whether the underlying event or claim is true. ## Original reporting this was written from - [Libertad Digital](https://libertaddigital.com/espana/2026-08-16/abascal-acusa-a-sanchez-de-desmoralizar-a-los-ceuties-para-entregar-la-ciudad-a-marruecos-7449130) — Abascal Accuses Sánchez of "Demoralizing" the Ceutis to Deliver the City to Morocco - [periodistadigital.com](https://periodistadigital.com/politica/20260816/hoy-celebran-elecciones-feijoo-abascal-aplastarian-sanchez-200-diputados-noticia-689405238488) — If Elections Are Held Today, Feijóo and Abascal Would Crush Sanchez with More than 200 Deputies - [EL ESPAÑOL](https://elespanol.com/espana/20260816/abascal-acusa-sanchez-abandonar-ceuta-entregarsela-marruecos-acabar-carcel/1003744354478_0.html) — Abascal Accuses Sánchez of Leaving Ceuta to Hand Him over to Morocco: "He Has to End up in Jail" - [ESdiario](https://esdiario.com/nacional/260816/195509/abascal-afirma-pedro-sanchez-abandonado-ceuta-facilitar-entrega-marruecos.html) — Abascal Claims that Pedro Sánchez Has Abandoned Ceuta to "Facilitate Its Handover to Morocco" - [Ara.cat](https://ara.cat/politica/abascal-torna-acusar-sanchez-voler-entregar-ceuta-marroc-desmoralitzant-espanyols_25_5825341.html) — Abascal Again Accuses Sánchez of Voler "Delivering" Ceuta Al Marroc "Demoralitzant" Els Espanyols - [El Plural](https://elplural.com/politica/espana/abascal-agita-conspiracion-sanchez-quiere-entregar-ceuta-marruecos_398113102) — Abascal Stirs up Conspiracy Theories that Sánchez Wants to "Hand over" Ceuta to Morocco - [La Razón](https://larazon.es/espana/abascal-acusa-sanchez-abandonar-ceuta-acabar-entregarla-marruecos_202608166a818543a5690f04737cca97.html) — Abascal Accuses Sánchez of "Abandoning" Ceuta to End up Handing Her over to Morocco - [El Debate](https://eldebate.com/espana/20260816/abascal-acusa-sanchez-abandonar-ceuta-entregar-ciudad-marruecos_449767.html) — Abascal Accuses Sánchez of "Abandoning" Ceuta to "Deliver" the City to Morocco - [The Objective | Periodismo ethos](https://theobjective.com/espana/politica/2026-08-16/abascal-sanchez-abandonar-ceuta-entregada-marruecos) — Abascal Accuses Sánchez of «Abandonar» Ceuta and Letting Him Be «Delivered» to Morocco - [europapress.es](https://europapress.es/nacional/noticia-abascal-acusa-sanchez-abandonar-ceuta-desmoralizar-habitantes-entregar-ciudad-marruecos-20260816104601.html) — Abascal Accuses Sánchez of "Abandoning" Ceuta to "demoralize"... ## Questions **What did Santiago Abascal accuse Pedro Sánchez of?** Santiago Abascal accused Pedro Sánchez of deliberately abandoning Ceuta to demoralise its inhabitants and facilitate a handover to Morocco. He called Sánchez a traitor and said he should be jailed for the migration crisis in Ceuta, as reported by Europa Press and La Razón. **What did Vox demand in Ceuta?** Vox demanded that the Partido Popular (PP) form a coalition government with them in Ceuta. Vox’s Ceuta leader, Juan Sergio Redondo, blamed the city’s president for supporting Sánchez’s policies and called for control of health and governance departments, as reported by La Razón. **Which outlets reported the story?** Right-rated outlets like La Razón, Libertad Digital, EL ESPAÑOL, ESdiario, and El Debate led on the story, while the centre-rated Europa Press also reported it. No left-rated outlet ran the story, as confirmed by the reports printed below. --- MediaBias News — https://mediabias.news. Reproduced from https://mediabias.news/politics/santiago-abascal-says-pedro-sanchez-is-deliberately-abandoning-ceuta-to-morocco. Please cite as: MediaBias News, "Santiago Abascal says Pedro Sánchez is deliberately abandoning Ceuta to Morocco", https://mediabias.news/politics/santiago-abascal-says-pedro-sanchez-is-deliberately-abandoning-ceuta-to-morocco