Spanish deputy PM accuses Sánchez of Morocco blackmail risk over spyware allegations

Spanish Deputy Prime Minister Ione Belarra accused Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez of being compromised by Morocco, suggesting Rabat’s alleged 2022 Pegasus spyware operation on Sánchez and three ministers may have yielded sensitive information now influencing his decisions. Speaking to Podemos’ Consejo Ciudadano Estatal on Saturday, Belarra questioned why Sánchez’s government defends Morocco amid the Ceuta crisis and avoids breaking ties with a “totalitarian” state, implying fear of blackmail: “Perhaps they have too much information about the president.”
Belarra also criticized the government’s handling of Ceuta, calling it a “great open-air prison” and warning that Sánchez’s approach risks undermining his own administration. She argued that reinforcing Ceuta’s sovereignty and public services would be a strategic counter to Morocco’s ambitions, backed by U.S. support.
The theory, repeatedly pushed by opposition parties PP and Vox, resurfaced this summer during parliamentary hearings as allies of Sánchez’s coalition sought explanations for his conciliatory stance toward Morocco. Belarra’s remarks echo earlier calls from within the coalition for a harder line on Rabat’s human rights record and border policies .
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