Spain will not allow Israel bound weapons to stop in its ports 

Spain will not authorise ships carrying weapons for Israel to call at its ports, Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Albares said today, after the country refused to let a ship call at the southeastern port of Cartagena, Reuters reports.

The Spanish minister explained in a press conference in Brussels on Friday: “This is the first time we have done this because it is the first time we spotted a ship carrying a shipment of weapons to Israel that wants to dock in a Spanish port.”

Albares stressed that his country: “Will do the same thing with any ship carrying weapons to Israel that wishes to dock in a Spanish port. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs will systematically reject these docking operations for a clear reason. The Middle East does not need more weapons, it needs more peace.”

Albares pointed out that the ship was the first ship prevented from docking in a Spanish port, noting this is consistent with the government’s decision not to grant licenses to export weapons to Israel since 7 October because Spain does not want to contribute to the war.

Spain has been one of the most outspoken and persistent European critics of the way in which Israel has carried out its war on Gaza, saying it rejects “the indiscriminate killing of Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank”.

Madrid has vowed to recognise the State of Palestine by July.

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