Spain hosts 20 European & Arab states, seeks sanctions against Israel due to 'massacre' in Gaza

The Spanish government hosted 20 European and Arab states in Madrid on Sunday with the purpose of ending the ongoing war in Gaza. Spanish Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares said Madrid seeks "stopping this war, which no longer has any goal.”

Albares urged the international community to impose sanctions against Israel as a pressure tool to end the IDF's offensive campaign against the Hamas terrorist organization in Gaza.

"We must all agree on a joint arms embargo," the Spanish foreign minister stated on France Info radio on Sunday. He described Israel’s war against Hamas as “inhumane” and “senseless,” but did not condemn Hamas for systematically violating international law by embedding itself in civilian areas.

"The last thing the Middle East needs right now is weapons," he argued.

Albares appeared to accuse Israel of committing a “massacre” in Gaza.

"Silence in these moments is complicity in this massacre... that is why we are meeting," he said.

Albares further demanded that humanitarian aid enter Gaza "massively, unimpeded, neutrally, so that it is not Israel who decides who can eat and who cannot."

Since the Hamas Oct. 7 attack in 2023, Israel has facilitated the entry of large amounts of humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip. Israeli officials have stressed that their goal is to ensure aid reaches Gazan civilians without supporting Hamas’ war efforts. However, Hamas has reportedly diverted humanitarian supplies, using them as a means to exert control and influence across the territory.

The Spanish foreign minister also proposed specific sanctions on individuals "who obstruct the two-state solution." Some observers believe Albares may have been referring to the far-right Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and Minister for National Security Itamar Ben Gvir, who are both opposed to the two-state solution. It is unclear whether Spain seeks sanctions against the leaders of the Palestinian Authority and Hamas who oppose the two-state solution and reject the Jewish state’s very existence within any boundaries.

Spain is one of Israel’s harshest critics in the European Union. In May, Spain, Ireland and Norway decided to unilaterally recognize a “Palestinian state.”

“This is a historic decision that has a single goal, and that is to help Israelis and Palestinians achieve peace,” Spain's prime minister, Pedro Sánchez, stated at the time.

In response, Israel strongly condemned Spain, Norway and Ireland, for wanting to reward Hamas after the Oct. 7 massacre and kidnappings.

Furthermore, Spain’s second deputy prime minister, Yolanda Diaz, used the antisemitic slogan, “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free” – a call for Israel’s destruction.

Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz rebuked Diaz, comparing her with the late Hamas leader in Gaza, Yahya Sinwar, and Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei.

“Khamenei, Sinwar and the Vice Premier of Spain Yolanda Diaz call for the disappearance of the State of Israel and the establishment of a Palestinian Islamic terrorist state from the river to the sea,” Katz stated.

Last month, Spain unsuccessfully attempted to prevent Israel from participating in the Eurovision Song Contest in Switzerland by accusing the Jewish state of  “war crimes.”

Earlier this month, Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez crossed another red line – accusing Israel of being a “genocidal state.”

“I’ll clarify one thing, Mr. Rufián: We don't trade with a genocidal state. We don’t,” Sánchez said during a Spanish Parliament debate on trade with Israel. “I believe I explained from this platform the other day what we’re talking about, when some statements were made that weren’t true.”