Alba Córcoles
The deputy and spokesperson for the Socialist Parliamentary Group in the Foreign Affairs Commission of the Congress of Deputies, Hana Jalloul, considers that the differentiated position maintained by the Spanish Government in the Gaza conflict may be a predecessor of that adopted by the European Union.
Hana Jalloul participated in a debate held at Casa Arabe and organized by the Alternativas Foundation, on “The impact of the Gaza war in the Middle East”, based on a report prepared by Ignacio Álvarez-Ossorio, David Hernández and Leticia Rodríguez. The debate, moderated by Vicente Palacio, director of foreign policy at the Alternativas Foundation, included the participation of the socialist deputy, Álvarez-Osorio himself, professor of Arab and Islamic Studies at the Complutense University of Madrid; and the journalist and researcher Olga Rodríguez.
After a few introductory words from the director of Casa Arabe, Irene Lozano, the meeting analyzed the situation of the conflict between Gaza and Israel, five months after its beginning on October 7 after the Hamas terrorist attack on Israeli territory.
Thus, the main lines of the development of the conflict were highlighted, which the interveners agreed to describe as “genocide”, after it has claimed the lives of 31,000 Palestinians, 13,000 of them children, while highlighting that Israel does not respond to the demand of the civil society of the ceasefire.
According to Álvarez-Ossorio, the Israeli offensive goes beyond a response to terrorism and seeks to make Gaza uninhabitable with the continuous bombing of hospitals and homes.
Olga Rodríguez, for her part, stressed that the punishment operation at the hands of Netanyahu also does not allow trucks of humanitarian aid to enter – already scarce – and the little that does manage to enter is subject to exhaustive control. “They prevent the arrival of essential products,” said the journalist.
The repeated question of the session was what the international community was doing about it. With “such big elephants in the room,” Palacio called – in reference to the United States – that are benefiting from the arms trade that the conflict entails, they seem to turn their backs on Gaza. The occupied territories of Palestine also receive very fragmented support from the European Commission. “It is no longer part of the solution, but part of the problem,” said Álvarez-Ossorio.
However, Hana Jalloul highlighted the differentiated position of Spain, who “could be a predecessor in Europe,” she said.
Regarding the possible outcome of the Israeli occupation of the Gaza Strip, Olga Rodríguez encouraged the international community, “which – she said – dehumanizes the human rights discourse” to react and condemn what is taking place in the Middle East. After ensuring that more and more information is censored or distorted by Israeli sources, she stated: “When the iron boot of the oppressor has been crushing the oppressed for years, and he manages to make a crack in the sole, what look do you expect to see?”
