Spanish opposition leader Santiago Abascal accused Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez of betraying the country over its handling of a surge of migrants entering the North African enclave of Ceuta.
Abascal, the leader of the right-wing Vox party, made the comments during a parliamentary session and asked whether Morocco was blackmailing Sánchez amid the border crisis.
During his remarks, Abascal called Sánchez both a “traitor” and “a dog.”
Vox leader Santiago Abascal and Vox parliamentary spokesperson Pepa Millan attend a plenary session in Madrid’s Congress of Deputies on Wednesday. Abascal displayed letters spelling “traidor,” or “traitor,” while referring to Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez. (Europa Press via Getty Images)
Sánchez responded during the heated exchange, saying: “I may be a dog, but I have no master.”
Abascal then held up individual sheets of paper that spelled out “Traidor,” the Spanish word for “traitor,” before Sánchez sat down.
Spain has faced major protests over the migrant arrivals in Ceuta, with critics blaming Sánchez for the crisis and some accusing him of yielding to Moroccan pressure.
Shelters set ablaze as Spain’s prime minister shifts blame beyond its borders
Sánchez pushed back against Abascal, saying: “I may be a dog, but I have no master.” (Patrick van Katwijk/Getty Images)
More than 70,000 migrants entered Ceuta in July. Most have since returned to Morocco, but many remain in the enclave, including some living in tent camps along the beach.
Spain’s national intelligence agency issued several warnings before migrants crossed en masse from Morocco into Ceuta in late July, according to declassified government documents reported by The Associated Press on Wednesday.
On July 29, one day before the crossings began, the National Intelligence Center sent a WhatsApp alert to Spain’s delegation in Ceuta about social-media calls “for an assault on the fence and by sea tomorrow at 8 p.m.”
“There are two different groups with a total of 180,000 followers,” the declassified WhatsApp message said, “just to give you an idea of its scale.”
