SPANISH Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez rejected suggestions today that the Moroccan authorities had helped orchestrate the deadly mass border crossing into the Spanish exclave of Ceuta earlier this summer.

“I can assure you that that no institution — neither the diplomatic service, nor the European Commission, nor any international body — has provided the Spanish government with solid evidence that Morocco planned or carried out the incident. None,” Mr Sanchez told politicians.

A day earlier, tens of thousands of people in cities across Spain joined protests against the ongoing humanitarian crisis in Ceuta, demanding solutions and Mr Sanchez’s resignation.

In late July, some 72,000 people swam, scrambled and later charged into Ceuta. Most returned to Morocco or were forced back over the border within days, but around 5,000 people, including 1,200 children, remain in the city weeks later, according to the national government. 

Ceuta’s local government gives a higher figure.

Mr Sanchez said 141 people had died attempting to reach the city, but neither his office nor Spain’s Interior Ministry explained how they reached the figure.

Major questions linger over what caused the mass crossing, which the Spanish government says was fuelled by a social media campaign.

Earlier this week, Spanish media claimed that a police report had highlighted the alleged permissiveness of Moroccan security forces during the incident, but Spanish officials denied that the document blamed Rabat.

However, Mr Sanchez said today that for a 10-hour period on July 30, when arrivals peaked, Morocco’s gendarmerie “allowed the border to be crossed.”