On October 6 and 7, several organizations, some of which receive Iranian funding, are holding events throughout Spain to celebrate the “Al-Aqsa Flood” . In mid-September 2024, the Palestinian ambassador submitted his charter to King Felipe, after Spain had recently officially recognized a Palestinian state.
A prestigious museum in Madrid opened an exhibition under the title “From the river to the sea”. A minister in the Spanish government also tweeted the call (which means the elimination of the State of Israel). Dozens of universities cut ties with Israel. The faculty of the University of Barcelona even approved a decision that genocide is taking place in Gaza. Israel’s Foreign Minister Israel Katz: “We are in 2024, the days of the Inquisition are over.
On October 6 and 7, several organizations, some of which receive Iranian funding, will hold events throughout Spain to celebrate the “Al-Aqsa Flood” – the name Hamas gave to the October 7 massacre – and the Spanish postal workers’ organization chose to strike as a protest against “Israeli aggression” in October 9, as if the Hamas massacre in the south never happened. Beyond all these, Spain, unlike all European countries, joined South Africa’s lawsuit at the International Court of Justice (ICJ), which is investigating war crimes allegedly committed by Israel.
At the same time, the Israeli Embassy in Madrid appealed to the appropriate authorities in Spain to act in order to cancel a planned procession by the “Maser Badil” organization, which maintains ties with Hamas, to celebrate the “Al-Aqsa Flood” in the city, but despite the embassy’s requests as of today the Satanic procession will take place.
In mid-September 2024, the Palestinian ambassador presented his charter to King Felipe, after Spain had recently officially recognized a Palestinian state.
Two weeks later, the chairman of the Palestinian Authority, Mahmoud Abbas, was received in the country with great honor, whose visit also included a warm and friendly meeting with the Prime Minister of Spain, Pedro Sánchez.
The only country that was not invited to the conference, which was exposed as a major international event, was Israel, which is perceived by the current Spanish government as irrelevant to the process.
Senior officials stated that the embassy works tirelessly to combat the Palestinian narrative and for Israel’s voice to be heard – both among officials – in the government and in the opposition – and in the Spanish public. It is true that the government pursues a policy hostile to Israel.
The fourth largest economy in the European Union, with a population of almost 50 million people, and is the second largest in the Union after France. Its economy is thriving and it has maintained extensive business-economic relations with Israel, which have yielded profits for both parties, but today are in danger, if the hostile line there strengthens.
According to senior officials in Israel who comment on Spain’s policy in Europe, “in every forum of leaders and ministers of the European Union, they push their anti-Israel agenda, and try to lead the problematic countries within the framework of the European Union. Joseph Borrell, as the High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy of the Union the European, pushes for sanctions against Israel within the Union. More than once, member states that support Israel tell him that he represents the Spanish agenda against Israel and acts against the official line of the European Union.”
The Reina Sofia Museum in Madrid, which is considered one of the leading cultural institutions in the world, opened an exhibition in solidarity with Palestine – under the title “From the River to the Sea”. Although the Israeli embassy strongly condemned the exhibition “calling for the destruction of Israel”, as a language – it did not help.
Along with Ireland and Norway, which is not in the European Union – Spain is perhaps the most anti-Israel country in Europe – dozens of universities in Spain signed a letter in which they threaten to sever relations with the universities and research centers in Israel if it does not stop the war in Gaza.
The university letter is signed by 76 public and private universities that are incorporated in the Association of Rectors of Spanish Universities. In a statement, the union condemned the serious events in Gaza and demanded an immediate and final cessation of the IDF’s military operations. It also called for an end to terrorist activities and the release of the abductees from Hamas captivity. The union also announced that it would suspend cooperation agreements with Israeli universities and research centers that did not express commitment determined for peace and compliance with international law. In addition, he pledged to “increase cooperation with the Palestinian scientific and higher education system” and expand the “cooperation, volunteering and treatment programs for the refugee population.”
The faculty of the University of Barcelona approved a proposed resolution that accuses Israel of genocide against the Palestinians and of implementing an apartheid policy.
Two universities in Spain have decided to cut academic ties with higher education institutions in Israel “until further notice”, due to Israeli activity in Gaza. The University of Granada and the University of Jaén announced the severance of ties and the imposition of an academic boycott on Israeli institutions.
The rector of the University of Granada, according to the report, announced that the institution under his management “will not sign new student exchange agreements, will not sign international scientific collaborations with Israeli institutions of higher education, with Israeli companies and with Israeli organizations.” The university will take these steps “as long as the war continues, and as long as the Israeli institutions do not categorically and clearly condemn the violation of human rights.” He told the media that the decision was made at the last meeting of the university’s management.
The University of Granada also pledged to help Palestinian researchers, “increase cooperation with Palestinian research institutions”, as well as help “researchers, volunteers and citizens who were harmed as a result of their opposition to the massacre in Gaza”, according to the Spanish announcement.
The university in the city of Khan also decided to sever ties with Israeli academic institutions that “did not express clear opposition to violations of international law, and an overall commitment to peace.” The university has agreements with three Israeli institutions, which will now be suspended – with Tel Aviv University, Ben Gurion University of the Negev and with “Shankar” Academic College. Both universities announced that they will allocate special places next year to Palestinian students.
Also in Spain – the minister, Sira Rego, of Palestinian origin, tweeted the call “from the river to the sea” – which denies Israel’s right to exist. On October 7, the same minister tweeted that the Palestinians have “the right to resist the occupation” – while the dimensions of the murderous terrorist attack by Hamas began to be revealed.
At the same time as all of this, the Minister of Social Rights in the Government of Spain, Pablo Bustindoy, a member of the extreme left party Somar, sent letters to several Spanish companies with significant business activities in Israel – in which he called on them to take steps to ensure that their activities do not contribute to genocide or human rights violations in Palestine. “No economic actor should contribute to the violation of the human rights of the Palestinian population,” Bostindoy wrote in a post he published on the X network.
The Spanish minister ordered the companies to re-evaluate their activities and increase the transparency surrounding their activities in Israel. He further said that they must inform the government of the risks of human rights violations in Palestine, whether in Gaza or in the West Bank.
It is further emphasized in the letter that the instruction will come into effect as of 6/1/2024, and that if these instructions are not complied with – the Ministry of Foreign Affairs will take additional steps.
And if all these are not enough – also at the head of the friendship group with the Palestinians in the European Parliament is a Spaniard – Manuel Pineda, who is not ashamed to be photographed next to Hezbollah and Hamas terrorists and to support terrorism.
So how is it possible that a country like Spain, which sees itself as a beacon of liberality and justice, has become anti-Israel?
First, Israel and the Palestinians became a central issue in Spain’s internal politics. Spain is in a state of division and polarization, perhaps the most acute in decades, which are also reflected in relation to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The tension reached a peak in the last elections in 2023, when Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez was forced to form a coalition with the far-left Somar party – which is almost completely identified with the Palestinians.
To keep the coalition together, Sanchez agreed to the coalition agreement to recognize a Palestinian state. The Spaniards, especially in the prime minister’s party, justify this by saying that it is important to give hope to the Palestinians, but in practice they give support to the extreme line of the Somar party, which official Israel boycotts.
Not everyone is against us in Spain :
Although the coalition is made up of extreme leftists, Israel has many friends in the right-wing camp. For example, the president of the Madrid district, Isabel Díaz Ayoso of the conservative party, is considered the leading oppositionist of Sánchez and his government, even though she is a politician who works at the district level. Iosu is a clear supporter of Israel, which is also encouraging because she is expected to have a bright future and has the potential to head the government of Spain in the future. Although this is a theoretical scenario, Spain led by Iosu could be one of the countries sympathetic to Israel in Europe.
Spain’s foreign minister hastened to disclaim Bostindoy’s words and said he did not know about the letter, and that Israel is a friendly country of Spain. Foreign Ministry sources in Madrid said they did not understand why Bostindoy spoke on behalf of the government.
Reactions to the anti-Israeli activity in Spain:
Foreign Minister Israel Katz responded: “Today I implemented preliminary punitive measures against the Spanish consulate in Jerusalem, which I decided following the Spanish government’s recognition of a ‘Palestinian state’ as a gift to the killers of Hamas and the serious anti-Semitic incitement of its leaders against the existence of the State of Israel. We will not put up with harming Israel’s sovereignty and security. Whoever gives an award to Hamas and tries to establish a Palestinian terrorist state will not be in contact with the Palestinians. We are in 2024, the days of the Inquisition are over. Today the Jews have a sovereign and independent state and no one will force us to convert our religion or threaten our existence – whoever harms us, we will be harmed by him.”
The Israeli embassy in Madrid issued a statement to the media in which it came out against the use of the term “genocide”, without mentioning the name of Minister Bostindoy. The embassy also stated that “the use of the term ‘genocide’ and false accusations spread by several ministers are an encouragement to Hamas and those who call for the destruction of Israel. The use of the term is a clear incitement to hatred and anti-Semitism.”
The minister’s party, Somar, regularly describes Israel’s attack on the Gaza Strip as genocide and wants to suspend economic relations with Israel. Other government ministers said they heard about the letters in the media. Economy Minister Carlos Cuarpo said that Bustindoy’s initiative came as a surprise, and Spanish companies are fully aware of their obligations in a stable legal framework that guides their activities in Israel and abroad.
The Jewish community in Spain condemned the exhibition in the Reina Sofia, as well as statements by ministers in Spain against Israel, claiming that they could incite hatred and encourage the anti-Semitism that skyrocketed in Spain. Since October 7th, the Jews of Spain have suffered threats, insults and intimidation, and Jewish students have suffered bullying and insults, and some have even been spat in the face. A few days ago a Jewish woman was attacked in the middle of the street in Madrid just for being Jewish, the schools are secured by the police, and the religious Jews go to the synagogues under police guard – an unusual thing in a democratic country.
