Netanyahu accuses Sánchez and De Croo of not pointing out Hamas for the massacre of Israelis and the use of Palestinians as “human shields”
The Israeli Foreign Ministry has summoned the ambassadors of Spain and Belgium this Friday in retaliation for the “false” statements made in recent hours by the President of the Spanish Government, Pedro Sánchez, and the Belgian Prime Minister, Alexander De Croo, since they consider that it represents “support for terrorism” by Hamas.
“Israel is acting in accordance with International Law and fighting against a terrorist organization worse than the Islamic State that commits war crimes and crimes against humanity,” the Israeli Foreign Ministry reported in a statement, alluding to the joint appearance of Sánchez and De Croo in the Rafá pass.
The minister himself, Eli Cohen, was the one who gave the order to convey a “reprimand” to the Spanish ambassador, Ana María Salomón Pérez, and the Belgian representative, Jean-Luc Bodson.
The Prime Minister of Israel, Benjamin Netanyahu, has also “roundly” condemned the statements of Sánchez and De Croo, since he believes that the two leaders did not clearly point out Hamas for the crimes committed, including the attacks against Israeli citizens and the use of Palestinian civilians as “human shields”, his office has reported.
On the other hand, the Ministry has reiterated in its statement that Israel plans to resume fighting in the Gaza Strip once the current ceasefire agreement has been completed, until “eliminating” the Hamas regime and releasing “all hostages.”
This Friday, Sánchez concluded a tour of the area in which he met, among other leaders, with the Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, before whom he questioned the scope of a military offensive that has left more than 14,000 dead in the Gaza Strip. Loop. He has also advocated recognizing the Palestinian state and has even raised the possibility of Spain doing so unilaterally if there are no moves at the EU level.
This Friday is the most serious episode of diplomatic tensions between Israel and Spain since the Hamas attacks on October 7, although the Israeli Embassy in Madrid also expressed its discomfort at the positions of “certain elements” of the previous Government, in allusion to former minister Ione Belarra.
The Spanish Foreign Ministry responded with a statement in which it called the Israeli accusations “falsehoods” and emphasized that foreign policy was set solely by Sánchez and Minister José Manuel Albares.
