A story spreading rapidly online over the weekend claimed that roughly 4,000 migrants currently in Ceuta were about to be flown to hotels across London. On Monday, Reuters set the record straight: the claim was entirely fabricated, with no basis in any real diplomatic arrangement between the United Kingdom and Spain.
The rumor traced back to an article supposedly published by the British tabloid Daily Express. Reuters found, however, that the piece actually originated from a cloned website mimicking the newspaper’s logo, layout and house style — a copycat operation with no connection to the real newsroom. The company that owns Daily Express flatly denied writing or publishing anything on the subject, describing the article as an outright forgery designed to look authentic.
Britain’s Home Office moved quickly to shut the story down as well. In a statement given to Reuters, officials called the claims « entirely without foundation, » adding that no plan to relocate migrants from Ceuta to UK soil was ever under consideration. According to the ministry, the only genuine contact between London and Madrid on the matter involved logistical support and coordination with Spanish authorities, who have been stretched thin since the surge of arrivals that hit the enclave in late July.
The episode is a reminder of how quickly disinformation can spread once it touches a subject as sensitive as migration in Ceuta, a Moroccan city that remains under Spanish administration. Fabricated stories like this one find fertile ground precisely because the humanitarian situation on the ground is genuinely strained, with thousands of unaccompanied minors still awaiting a lasting solution months after the crisis began.
For both Spanish and British officials, the incident underscores a familiar lesson: verify the source before sharing, especially when a story claims to come from an established outlet. Reuters is now urging readers to be wary of websites that copy the branding of legitimate news organizations to lend fabricated content a veneer of credibility. As of now, no government involved has announced any actual plan to transfer migrants from Ceuta to London.
