The Diplomat
The Israeli Embassy in Spain this afternoon issued a statement in which it describes as “immoral” the statements made recently by “some members of the Spanish government” about that country, on the occasion of the war with Hamas.
The statement from the Embassy, which is headed by Rodica Radian-Gordon, alludes, without quoting them, to statements made by the acting Minister for Social Rights and leader of Podemos, Ione Belarra, who has demanded that the government of Pedro Sánchez take Israel to the International Criminal Court for “war crimes” and has stated, among other things, that “using the terrible murders of Israeli civilians by Palestinian armed factions as an excuse to justify Israel’s crimes and the massacre in Gaza is absolutely unacceptable”.
The Embassy “strongly condemns” such statements and stresses that it is “deeply disturbing that, at a time when Israel is mourning the loss of innocent lives in the barbaric Hamas attack on 7 October, in which more than 1,300 men, women and children were barbarically murdered, and when more than 150 civilians, including children, women and the elderly remain captive to Hamas terrorists in Gaza, certain elements within the Spanish Government have chosen to align themselves with this ISIS-like terrorism”.
After insisting that such statements are “absolutely immoral”, the statement adds that they also endanger the security of Jewish communities in Spain, exposing them to the risk of further anti-Semitic incidents and attacks”.
It therefore calls on Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez to “unequivocally denounce and condemn these shameful statements”.
Rejection by the Spanish government
Hours later, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a note in which it states that the Spanish government ‘categorically’ rejects what it describes as ‘falsehoods in the Israeli Embassy’s communiqué about some of its members’ and adds that ‘it does not accept unfounded insinuations about them’.
The Foreign Ministry stresses that “any political leader can freely express positions as a representative of a political party in a full democracy such as Spain”.
In any case,” it emphasises, “the position of the Government of Spain as a whole with respect to the terrorist attacks perpetrated by Hamas is clear: categorical condemnation, demand for the immediate and unconditional release of hostages and recognition of Israel’s right to defend itself within the limits set by international law and international humanitarian law”.
It also recalls that the government as a whole “has repeatedly expressed the need to distinguish the Palestinian population from the Hamas terrorist group, to protect the civilian population of Gaza and the imperative need to maintain the basic supplies indispensable for the well-being of the population”.
It adds that “the government as a whole reiterates that the only viable solution to achieve a situation of peace and stability in the region is the solution of two states coexisting in peace and security, as endorsed by the United Nations”.
For her part, the minister Ione Belarra responded to the embassy’s criticism on her social network account X, stating: “Your government is carrying out war crimes in the Gaza Strip, massive bombings, water and electricity cuts, they are not letting in humanitarian aid. Denouncing this genocide is not “aligning with Hamas”, it is a democratic obligation. Silence is complicity with terror”.
