Spain Summons Israeli Envoy over ‘Wrong Side of History’ Comment

June 27, 2025 News
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez. (Photo: Frederic Esteve, Supplied)

By Palestine Chronicle Staff  

The Spanish Prime Minister urged the EU to immediately suspend its association agreement with Israel.

Spain summoned the Israeli embassy’s chargé d’affaires on Thursday in protest at his “unacceptable” statement that Madrid was “on the wrong side of history” for condemning the “genocide” in the Gaza Strip.

In his strongest condemnation to date, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said Gaza was in a “catastrophic situation of genocide.” He was speaking ahead of an EU summit in Brussels on Thursday.

Sanchez urged the EU to immediately suspend its association agreement with Israel, citing a report which found “indications” that Israel was breaching its human rights obligations under the deal.

‘Demonizing’ Israel Claims

The Israeli embassy in Madrid accused Sanchez of “demonizing” Israel, saying his statements were “not only deeply regrettable: it is morally indefensible.”

“The stance adopted by the Spanish Government places Spain on the most extreme—and increasingly isolated—margins of the European position on the Middle East. And it places it, regrettably, on the wrong side of history,” the embassy said in a statement on X.

The Spanish government slammed the statement as “unacceptable” and summoned the embassy’s chargé d’affaires.

Push to Review Agreement

Article 2 of the EU-Israel Association Agreement establishes that respect for human rights and democratic principles constitutes an “essential element” of the deal, according to the Anadolu news agency.

Spain Seeks Immediate Suspension of EU-Israel Association Agreement

The agency cited Sanchez as saying: “It makes absolutely no sense that we’ve passed 18 sanctions packages on Russia for its aggression against Ukraine and Europe but, with double standards, haven’t even been able to suspend the Association Agreement with Israel when they are flagrantly violating Article 2 in terms of human rights.”

Spain and Ireland first began pushing for the bloc to review the deal in February 2024. However, the bloc only agreed to review the agreement after a Dutch initiative in May, the report noted.

Human Rights Obligations

On Monday, EU foreign ministers gathered to respond to the review, which found “indications” that Israel breached its human rights obligations in Gaza, the report added.

Confidential EU Document Accuses Israel of Weaponizing Starvation in Gaza

After the meeting, the bloc’s foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas ruled out suspending the deal for now.

“Our first goal is to change the situation on the ground,” she reportedly said. “If the situation does not improve, then we can discuss further measures and come back in July.”

Staggering Death Toll

Since Israel’s reneging on the ceasefire on March 18, it has killed and wounded thousands of Palestinians throughout the Gaza Strip through a bloody and ongoing aerial bombardment.

On October 7, 2023, following a Palestinian Resistance operation in southern Israel, the Israeli military launched a genocidal war against the Palestinians, killing over 56,000, wounding more than 131,000, with over 14,000 still missing.

Despite habitual condemnation by many countries around the world of the Israeli genocide, little has been done to hold Israel accountable.

Israel is currently under investigation for the crime of genocide by the International Court of Justice, while accused war criminals — including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu — are now officially wanted by the International Criminal Court.

The Israeli genocide has been largely defended, supported, and financed by Washington and a few other Western powers.

(PC, Anadolu)

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1 Comment

  1. If the EU blood washes that terrible treaty, Spain should get out of the EU!

    In Canada, we have a “Israel” and Canada Treaty – thanks to Freeland – locked up for 50 years (50!) So no one can review it. That is not a treaty.

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