Spain’s army was finally ordered to intervene when groups crowded into the ferry terminal connecting Ceuta with mainland Spain. Genuflecting progressive French president Emmanuel Macron has kept silent, but his police are tightening controls and quintupling the number of Gendarmes at the Spanish border. “In the current international context, the European Union cannot afford this kind of selfish, polarizing and unlawful reaction,” implored Sánchez. Spain’s security services had presented a strategy to strengthen border defenses around Ceuta and Melilla following a border breakout in 2021. But Spain’s military is now facing criticism from EU-funded NGOs for harsh measures employed to force them out of Spain.