<h6>Eduardo González</h6> <h4><strong>Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares has recalled the Spanish ambassador to Tel Aviv, Ana Sálomon, "in response to the slanderous accusations against Spain and the unacceptable measures against two members of our country's government," according to official sources from the Ministry on Monday.</strong></h4> Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez announced nine measures this Monday to halt Israel's "genocide" in Gaza, including the "urgent" adoption of a Royal Decree-Law to impose an arms embargo on Israel. “What Prime Minister Netanyahu presented in October 2023 as a military operation in response to the atrocious Hamas terrorist attacks has ended up becoming a new wave of illegal occupations, an unjustifiable attack against the Palestinian civilian population, an attack that the United Nations Special Rapporteur and most experts now describe as genocide,” Sánchez declared during an appearance at the Moncloa Palace. In response to these statements and these nine measures, Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar called the Spanish government “anti-Semitic” and declared that they are “a clear attempt by the corrupt Sánchez government to distract attention from the serious corruption scandals.” He also announced that he will ban Vice President and Minister of Labor Yolanda Díaz and Minister of Youth and Children Sira Rego from entering the country. “It is a source of pride that a state that perpetrates genocide prohibits Sira Rego and me from entering the country. We will continue fighting for the rights of the Palestinian people, whether Mr. Netanyahu likes it or not,” Díaz wrote on Bluesky. Following Saar's remarks, Pedro Sánchez's government “strongly” rejected the “false and slanderous accusations of antisemitism” made by the Israeli government toward Spain and the Spanish people, as well as “the unacceptable ban on entry to Israel for two members of the Spanish government.” “The measures regarding the inhumane situation in Gaza and the West Bank, announced today by the Prime Minister of Spain, respond to the majority sentiment of Spanish society and are adopted within the framework of its sovereignty and in line with its defense of peace, human rights, and international law,” the Ministry of Foreign Affairs declared in a statement. “In recent years, Spain has granted nationality to 72,000 Sephardim, who are now our fellow citizens,” the Foreign Ministry continued. “This government immediately condemned the horrific attack by the terrorist group Hamas and has consistently demanded the release of all hostages,” it recalled. “It also approved the first National Plan against Antisemitism in our history in January 2023 and decided to adopt the IHRA definition of antisemitism. This government is committed to combating antisemitism and racism and to a country where there is no room for any form of discrimination,” it stated. "Likewise, the Government of Spain sovereignly defends the existence of two states, Israel and Palestine, living side by side and mutually guaranteeing peace and security, and demands that Israel end its occupation of Gaza and the West Bank, end the violence unleashed against the Palestinian civilian population, and end the humanitarian blockade of the Strip," it added.
