The Diplomat
Far from easing tensions with the Israeli government following its decision to recognise the Palestinian state, Pedro Sánchez’s government continues to make statements that irritate the Israeli authorities. Yesterday, the Minister of Defence, Margarita Robles, said that what is happening in the Gaza Strip is “a real genocide”, words to which the Israeli Embassy in Madrid responded.
The Minister of Defence, who was in Oviedo to attend the Armed Forces Day parade, told RTVE: “Spain is always very supportive of what is happening in the world, we cannot forget that people are dying in Ukraine, it is a tremendous war, nor can we ignore what is happening in Gaza, which is a real genocide”.
Robles, who added that “neither” should we forget “what is happening in Africa, in places like Sudan”, also referred to the possible consequences of Spain’s recognition of the Palestinian state, and ruled out reprisals from Israel in terms of intelligence service cooperation.
Robles stressed the professionalism of the intelligence experts, pointing out that both Spain and Israel have “common objectives”, for example, in “the fight against terrorism”. “One issue is the more diplomatic or more political aspects, but the fight against terrorism, in which we are all involved in order to achieve a better and fairer society, I am sure that we will continue to work together,” she said.
Robles insisted that the recognition of the Palestinian state is “a commitment to peace and to the coexistence of two states”, and she called for “looking at it positively”. “This is not against anyone, this is not against the Israeli state, this is not against the Israelis, who are people we respect”, she said, going on to point out that recognition is also a commitment to the “cessation of violence in Gaza”.
The Minister of Defence stressed that Spain has a contingent in Lebanon under a United Nations mandate and said that “it is doing a great job in maintaining peace”. The Lebanese people,” she stressed, “love the Spanish people. And the dedication that our armed forces are putting into Lebanon means that Spain is going to be an important factor when the time comes to restore peace”.
Regret from the Israeli Embassy
Robles’ words provoked a reaction from the Israeli Embassy in Madrid, which, on its social network account X, wrote: “We regret that the Minister of Defence, Margarita Robles, has adopted the false and unfounded account of the terrorist organisation Hamas”.
“Israel is fighting in Gaza in accordance with international law in a war against Hamas that it neither started nor wanted, following the unprecedented massacre of 7 October. Israel is facing a cruel enemy that uses its people as human shields and still holds 125 Israelis hostage”.
The Israeli government announced on Friday its decision to “sever the connection between the Spanish representation in Israel and the Palestinians” and “prohibit” the Consulate in Jerusalem from providing services to Palestinians living in the West Bank following the recognition of the State of Palestine, which will come into force on 28 May, and the “anti-Semitic” declarations of the second vice-president of the government, Yolanda Díaz, who used, in a video in support of the recognition of the Palestinian state, the expression “from the river to the sea”, which is the slogan also used by Hamas and which represents the elimination of the state of Israel.
Demands to Israel
Yesterday, the Spanish government also called on Israel to halt the operation in the city of Rafah, in southern Gaza, as ordered by the International Court of Justice (ICJ), the highest court of the UN.
In a message on his account on the social network X, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, José Manuel Albares, reminded Benjamin Netanyahu’s government that “the precautionary measures of the ICJ, including the cessation of Israel’s offensive in Rafah, are obligatory”. “We demand their implementation,” he wrote.
The ICJ ruled on Friday on the additional measures requested by South Africa, which accused Israel of disregarding previous measures ordered by the UN court to prevent genocide in Gaza, and of further worsening the humanitarian situation in the enclave by launching a new offensive on Rafah, which has forced a new displacement of hundreds of thousands of people.
The court ordered Israel to halt its military operation in Rafah and to allow unrestricted entry into the Strip for any commission the UN may decide to set up to investigate possible genocide in the Palestinian enclave.
In the same message, Albares recalled that the ICJ has issued opinions calling for a “ceasefire, the release of the hostages” in the hands of the Palestinian militias, as well as unrestricted “humanitarian access.” “The suffering of Gazans and the violence must end,” the minister stressed.
For his part, the High Representative of the European Union (EU) for Foreign Affairs, Josep Borrell, also reminded Israel this Saturday that the ICJ orders are “binding” and “must be fully and effectively applied.”
