This sounds like Firefox on iPad is occasionally misinterpreting taps as “open in new tab” actions, likely due to a temporary touch-handling bug. Since force-closing the app only fixes it temporarily, try fully restarting the iPad, disabling any connected mouse/trackpad or accessibility touch features, and clearing Firefox’s tabs/cache in Settings. If the issue continues on the latest version of Firefox and iPadOS, it’s probably a bug worth reporting through Mozilla feedback or reinstalling the app.
