Eduardo González
The Spanish Government reiterated on Monday its “strongest condemnation” of the attacks perpetrated exactly one year ago, on October 7, 2023, by the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) against Israel, which caused more than 1,200 deaths and the kidnapping of more than 250 people and provoked the harsh military response of Benjamin Netanyahu’s Executive. Likewise, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, José Manuel Albares, assured, in response to Israel, that it is “out of place” to accuse Spain of being “a paradise for sowing hatred and inciting the destruction of Israel.”
Pedro Sánchez’s government issued a statement in which it reiterated, on the occasion of the anniversary of those events, “its strongest condemnation of the atrocious terrorist attacks by Hamas on October 7, 2023.” It also expressed “its solidarity with the families and friends of the victims, especially remembering Maya Villalobo and Iván Illaramendi, the two Spanish citizens killed during the terrorist attacks.”
“After a year, the Government expresses its solidarity with the families of the hostages who are still kidnapped and demands their immediate release,” the text continues. “A ceasefire, the release of the hostages, access to humanitarian aid to civilians and an end to violence are necessary,” the Government warns.
The Executive also “reiterates its determination to fight against anti-Semitism and all forms of hatred and discrimination” and undertakes “to continue working for peace in the Middle East and to advance in the implementation of the two-state solution living together in peace and security, the best guarantee of stability for all in the region.”
For his part, Pedro Sánchez himself released a message on the social network X in which, on the occasion of the “first anniversary of the brutal terrorist attack by Hamas against Israel,” he expressed, “once again,” his “strongest condemnation of this cruel and merciless attack.”
“I also reiterate our demand that Hamas immediately release all the hostages it is holding inhumanely in Gaza,” he continued. “Today I also want to pay tribute to all the victims who lost their lives that day and who will always remain in our memory,” he added.
According to Sánchez, “those attacks triggered a spiral of violence that has caused the death of thousands of innocent civilians in Gaza, the West Bank and now Lebanon.” “The situation is unbearable. The war must end now. Spain will continue to work tirelessly for peace,” he concluded.
Albares responds to Israel
For his part, José Manuel Albares has responded to the accusations made this Sunday by the Israeli Embassy in Spain and by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Government of Benjamin Netanyahu, in which he denounced that one of the demonstrations organized this past weekend in Madrid against the offensive in Gaza was called by the Masar Badil Movement, an “organization linked to terrorist groups such as the PFLP and Samidoun.” Likewise, the Israeli Executive assured that in this concentration, held between the Plaza de Legazpi and Atocha, “terrorism was glorified” and the Hamas attacks, perpetrated exactly one year ago, were “celebrated.” “We are outraged and saddened that Spain has become a paradise for sowing hatred and inciting the destruction of Israel,” declared the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
“This statement is completely out of place: Spain is a country of tolerance, it is a country where one can live in freedom and have freedom of expression and where any form of incitement to hatred and, of course, anti-Semitism, are not only widely rejected by all Spanish society, but are also included in the Penal Code,” Albares said in an interview with La Hora on La 1 of TVE. Therefore, he added, “if someone believes that any type of crime of incitement to hatred, of anti-Semitism, has been committed, they can go to the Public Prosecutor’s Office.”
Moreover, Albares said yesterday Monday, in an interview with the BBC, that the various diplomatic contacts with his “friends in the region” have shown him that all Arab countries are “willing to normalize, to recognize Israel, to guarantee its security, as long as Israel also agrees to the implementation of the two-state solution.” To date, only a small number of Arab countries have recognised Israel as a state: Jordan and Egypt, which have had peace agreements for years, and the four Arab countries that signed the so-called ‘Abraham Accords’ in 2020 to normalise their relations with the Jewish state: Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates, Morocco and Sudan.
New repatriations
With regard to the repatriation of the Spaniards who remain in Lebanon, the Minister of Foreign Affairs explained that “this week, probably on Wednesday, there will be a new flight.” “This morning we have been in contact with the Ministry of Defense so that one of the planes that is going to fly to Beirut for reasons other than evacuation can return with Spanish citizens who still wish to do so,” he continued.
“Of course, there are practically no Spanish citizens left who have expressed their desire to leave the country,” he said. “Many Spaniards have also left through commercial means that are still available, and I continue to encourage all Spaniards who wish to leave Lebanon to urgently contact our Embassy, which will help them either to get on these flights or to leave on these commercial flights,” he concluded.
Specifically, the Ministry of Defence reported on Monday that an A400 aircraft, which is carrying material for the Spanish contingents deployed in Turkey, Iraq and Lebanon, has been adapted to allow the transfer of people and offer the possibility for 65 Spaniards to leave Lebanon next Wednesday, when the arrival of the aircraft is scheduled.
“In coordination with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, European Union and Cooperation,” it continued, “the Ministry of Defence has provided assistance in numerous evacuations and the members of the Air Force and Space Force have ample experience to be able to adapt their flights to the needs of each moment.” “This is the case of this aircraft, which combines the capacity to transport material and people, and which is leaving this afternoon for Turkey, before arriving in Lebanon and bringing back to Spain the civilians who have requested it,” it concluded.
