Some organizations from the conservative ecosystem in the United States have been promoting in recent months the idea of punishing the Government of Pedro Sánchez for denying the Pentagon the use of Spanish peninsular bases during the attack on Iran and for leading in Brussels the opposition to Israel's "genocide" in Gaza. Among all these voices, the Middle East Forum (MEF), a think tank based in Philadelphia, has perhaps been the most persistent in its campaign against Spain.
From the MEF, they have urged the White House to recognize Ceuta and Melilla as "occupied territories" and use the growing military cooperation between Morocco and Israel as a "lever" to weaken Spain's strategic position in the Strait of Gibraltar. The collaborators of this think tank also called on Tel Aviv to recognize the right to self-determination of Catalans or Basques.
Furthermore, the Middle East Forum urged Mossad to establish relations with the Catalan Alliance of Silvia Orriols. The organization suggests that these actions are part of a broader strategy to punish Spain for its diplomatic positions.
The most prescient initiative from the MEF emerged in March, when they published an article titled "Morocco should send a new...", suggesting that Morocco should take Ceuta. This prediction gained relevance after the recent migration crisis in the Spanish city of Ceuta.
