Madrid (Spain), Sept. 8 (LaPresse) – The Spanish government "categorically rejects the false and slanderous accusations of antisemitism made by the Israeli government against Spain and Spaniards, as well as the unacceptable ban on entry to Israel for two members of the executive." This was stated in a note released by the Spanish Foreign Ministry after Israel sanctioned Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Labour Yolanda Diaz, as well as Minister of Childhood and Youth Sira Rego. The decision by Benjamin Netanyahu's government came after Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez announced measures against Israel to "stop the genocide in Gaza."
The Spanish Foreign Ministry said that "the measures relating to the inhumane situation in Gaza and the West Bank, announced today by the president of the government, reflect the majority sentiment of Spanish society and are adopted within the framework of its sovereignty and in consistency with its defense of peace, human rights, and international legality." The ministry, rejecting accusations of antisemitism, recalled that "in recent years, Spain has granted citizenship to 72,000 Sephardic Jews," that the government "immediately condemned the horrific attack by the terrorist group Hamas and has constantly called for the release of all hostages," and that "it also approved the country's first National Plan against Antisemitism in January 2023, and adopted the antisemitism definition of the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance." "This government is committed to fighting antisemitism and racism and to a country where there is no room for any type of discrimination," it said. "Likewise, in a sovereign manner, the Spanish government supports the existence of two States, Israel and Palestine, living together in good neighborly relations and mutually guaranteeing peace and security, and demands from Israel an end to the occupation of Gaza and the West Bank, an end to the violence against the Palestinian civilian population, and an end to the blockade of humanitarian aid," Madrid explained. "The Spanish government will not be intimidated in its defense of peace, international law, and human rights," it assured.