In late July 2026, tens of thousands of undocumented migrants from Morocco crossed within a matter of hours into the Spanish enclaves of Ceuta and Melilla bordering the country. This event underscored the ongoing territorial conflict between the two nations: on the one hand, Morocco views the enclaves as occupied territories that disrupt its territorial continuity in North Africa and demands sovereignty over them. On the other hand, Spain asserts that these enclaves constitute an integral part of its sovereign territory, having been under continuous Spanish rule since the 15th and 16th centuries—a period preceding the establishment of modern Morocco.
The influx of undocumented migrants into Europe from Africa and the Middle East has persisted on a large scale for over a decade. The phenomenon gained significant traction in 2011 with the onset of the “Arab Spring“, reaching its zenith during the massive migration wave of 2015, which threatened to destabilize the European Union. Among the primary drivers of this migration, notable factors include the Syrian Civil War, armed conflicts in Libya, Iraq and Afghanistan, as well as political persecution in various Asian and African nations, particularly Eritrea, Somalia, Nigeria, and Sudan.
In recent years, many European nations appear to have acquiesced to the permanent presence of millions of undocumented migrants who entered their territories via land and sea routes. Some states went even further, providing extensive assistance, financial grants, generous social benefits, and, in certain cases, citizenship. The European Union member states will increasingly have to contend in the coming years with the profound social, economic and political ramifications of this policy, which is altering the very character of the continent.
This latest wave of illicit border crossings into the Spanish enclaves in North Africa should evoke several poignant questions as part of an Israeli influence effort, if not a fully-fledged public diplomacy campaign. These questions transcend the conventional discourse regarding the impact of migration on a “naive Europe”, bringing to light the hypocrisy of certain EU member states. Indeed, the very nations that have actively engaged for decades with the “Palestinian issue”—yet steadfastly refuse to legally absorb “Palestinian refugees” under a regulated framework—do virtually nothing to prevent the massive, illegal, and unchecked influx of predominantly Muslim migrants.
Given accumulated experience, and in light of the tolerance, patience and absorptive capacity of “enlightened Europeans”, it is worth pondering why assistance should not be rendered to those Gaza Arabs who desire to emigrate to Europe aboard the humanitarian aid flotilla ships intercepted at sea by the Israeli Navy en route to Gaza? After all, while the activists aboard were deported to their home countries via commercial flights courtesy of the Israeli taxpayer, the confiscated vessels remained empty—vessels that could have comfortably transported Gazan families under luxury conditions, rather than forcing them to rely, hypothetically, on makeshift floatation devices or precarious dinghies.
Another incisive issue that warrants being raised on every UN platform, in European parliaments, and at academic conferences, where Israel is routinely targeted, concerns how “European imperialist remnants” persist on foreign soil as relics of Spanish, French, Dutch, and British campaigns of conquest, violence, subjugation and plunder. What legitimate connection do these European nations, whose status as global empires waned over half a century ago, have to distant overseas territories, other than sheer hypocrisy and the perpetuation of historic injustice driven by material interests such as the slave trade and natural resource extraction?
The Spanish enclaves in North Africa that have recently captured headlines are by no means the only territories in Africa and other regions around the globe operating under a European flag and protectorate. Among the dozens of such territories worldwide, several prominent examples merit mention in order to expose and comprehend the full scope of this issue and the ignorance surrounding these “sanctimonious observers”, who direct their hypocritical scrutiny toward the State of Israel—the sole and promised homeland of the Jewish people.
UN Map of Non-Autonomous Territories (Source: UN)
The United Kingdom retains the largest number of Overseas Territories remaining as vestiges of the British Empire. Among the most prominent of these islands are:
- The Falkland Islands in the South Atlantic Ocean, which have been the subject of an ongoing sovereignty dispute for decades—a conflict that notably escalated into a high-profile, full-scale war with Argentina in 1982.
- Gibraltar, adjacent to Spain and formerly under Spanish rule. Situated at the strategic confluence of the Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea, its primary geopolitical significance derives from this location. The issue of sovereignty over Gibraltar resurfaces periodically between Spain and the United Kingdom; it currently functions as a British Overseas Territory with a high degree of local autonomy granted to its inhabitants.
Additional, lesser-known islands under British sovereignty include:
- The British Virgin Islands, which repeatedly changed hands among colonial powers after the indigenous population was displaced and enslaved Africans were forcibly brought to the territory.
- The Turks and Caicos Islands, where a non-violent political struggle has been underway since the 1960s between proponents of immediate and full independence and those favouring either the preservation of their status as a British territory or potential association with Canada.
- The Cayman Islands, whose residents elected to remain under British sovereignty rather than align with Jamaica upon its independence.
- Anguilla, whose attempts at self-determination were resisted, with rebellions subsequently suppressed in order to retain the territory under British governance.
- Akrotiri and Dhekelia, the Sovereign Base Areas of the United Kingdom in Cyprus, which remain as relics of Britain’s strategic interest in maintaining military footholds in the Eastern Mediterranean near the Suez Canal.
In addition to these entities, several other islands and Crown dependencies worldwide remain under the jurisdiction of the British Crown.
Map detailing the 14 UK’s overseas territories (source: House of Lords Library)
France likewise continues to retain overseas territories and former colonies, remnants of French colonialism, across several key regions worldwide, including:
- New Caledonia, whose history reflects an ongoing struggle between the indigenous Kanak population and French colonial rule to this day, with the population divided nearly equally between those demanding independence and those preferring French sovereignty. In May 2024, a wave of riots erupted following an attempt by the French government to enact a constitutional reform altering the territory’s electoral rolls—a move perceived by independence movements as an effort to dilute the indigenous population’s political influence. On July 12, 2025, France announced an agreement with New Caledonia under which the overseas territory would remain French while being declared a new state. Pursuant to the deal, the “State of New Caledonia” is to be anchored within the French Constitution, enabling other nations to recognize it as a distinct state. Notable alongside New Caledonia are Guadeloupe, Saint Barthélemy, and French Polynesia.
- Mayotte, an archipelago in the Indian Ocean, which the Republic of the Comoros claims as part of its sovereign territory, steadfastly refusing to recognize French sovereignty over the islands.
- Wallis and Futuna, though encountered by Dutch and British navigators in the 17th century, were first permanently settled by French missionaries in 1837, who converted the local population to Roman Catholicism. Following a local uprising in 1842, France intervened on behalf of the missions—an intervention that ultimately led to the islands’ formal integration into France.
- Saint Pierre and Miquelon, situated adjacent to Canada, represent the sole remaining territory under French control in North America. Sovereignty over the islands repeatedly oscillated between the British and the French until France permanently established control in 1816.
- Martinique, which historically changed hands between the British and the French, has yet to attain independence as advocated by the Martinican independence movement.
- French Guiana, which constitutes the largest European territory located outside the European continent.
- The Island of Saint Martin, whose landmass is divided between France and the Netherlands.
France and its overseas territories (Source: coolgeography).
The Netherlands retains several Caribbean islands, some of which exist as autonomous constituent countries, such as Aruba, Sint Maarten (which shares the island with France), and Curaçao—whose indigenous population was decimated by the Spanish before falling to British control and ultimately to the Dutch, who transformed it into a major hub for the transatlantic slave trade. Furthermore, special municipalities of the Netherlands in the Caribbean include Sint Eustatius, Bonaire and Saba—the latter of which repeatedly changed hands between French, British, and ultimately Dutch rule.
The overseas territories of the Netherlands (source: Aljazeera)
Denmark holds two expansive autonomous territories: Greenland and the Faroe Islands. Greenland is considered the world’s largest island; while geographically situated in North America, it remains politically affiliated with Denmark and currently finds itself at the center of a geopolitical storm surrounding US President Donald Trump’s expressed intention to purchase or acquire the island due to its strategic importance.
The Danish Realm is spread far apart, across the North Atlantic Ocean and North Sea
(source: Wikipedia)
Conclusion and Recommendations
Empires fall, yet antisemitism and hypocrisy endure. Recent developments in the Spanish enclaves of Ceuta and Melilla in North Africa, the unrest in French-governed New Caledonia, the Falklands War 44 years ago, and numerous other precedents have repeatedly demonstrated over time the hypocrisy of Spain, France, Britain, the Netherlands and even Denmark. These are nations whose stature as colonial superpowers of the Old World has waned, yet they continue to cling tenaciously to the vestiges of their global colonies without a trace of remorse.
After conquering territories, annihilating or enslaving indigenous populations, forcibly converting locals, and plundering natural resources, these nations appear entirely unbothered by preaching morality specifically to Israel, accusing it of “occupying” the Promised Land—the ancient homeland to which the Jewish people returned following two millennia of forced exile. Nor does it preclude them from accusing Israel of harming a hostile local Arab population, despite the fact that a significant portion thereof comprises Arab migrants, the vast majority of whom harbor aspirations for the destruction of the State of Israel and the establishment of an Arab-Islamic territory dubbed “Palestine” from the river to the sea.
It becomes evident that European colonialism has not entirely vanished from the world, much like the antisemitism and hypocrisy still pulsating across a European continent gradually succumbing to Islamic conquest under the guise of “migration”. Israel is imperative to capitalize on developments in Europe, North Africa, and wherever European hypocrisy manifests in its full force. Israel must act at every juncture and across every platform to fight for its reputation and the justice of its cause in the arena of global influence and narrative control – by going on the offensive.
