Spain bans Israel-bound arms shipments, slams Netanyahu for ‘genocide’ in Gaza

Spain has announced a series of sweeping measures aimed at increasing pressure on Israel over its ongoing genocide in Gaza, including a ban on arms shipments bound for Israel via Spanish ports and airspace. Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez made the announcement during a televised address today, further cementing Madrid’s break with the pro-Israel stance adopted by most European governments.

“We will ban ships carrying arms to Israel from docking at Spanish ports and prohibit aircraft transporting weapons to Israel from using Spanish airspace,” said Sánchez. “We will also increase our support for the Palestinian Authority and the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) and impose an embargo on products originating in illegal Israeli settlements in the occupied Palestinian territories.”

Perhaps most significantly, the Spanish government will also bar entry to individuals directly involved in what Sánchez explicitly described as “genocide”.

“We hope that [the measures] will serve to add pressure on Prime Minister Netanyahu and his government to alleviate some of the suffering that the Palestinian population is enduring,” he stated.

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This marks the most forceful condemnation yet from a European head of government, using terminology typically avoided by Western officials when referring to Israel’s genocidal actions in Gaza. Spain’s response stands in stark contrast to that of the UK, Germany and other European states, many of which continue to back Israel diplomatically and militarily despite growing evidence of genocidal acts.

The Israeli government, for its part, responded angrily. Foreign Minister Gideon Saar accused Sánchez of anti-Semitism, and attempting to deflect from domestic corruption allegations. In retaliation, Israel banned two Spanish ministers—Yolanda Díaz and Sira Rego, both from Spain’s left-wing Sumar party—from entering the country.

The measures come amid mounting criticism of European complicity in Israeli war crimes. The UK, for instance, has faced calls from hundreds of organisations and senior military figures to halt arms exports to Israel and end its surveillance flights over Gaza..

While the UK recently signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Palestinian Authority affirming support for a two-state solution based on 1967 borders and rejecting Israeli settlement expansion, it has simultaneously allowed military cooperation with Israel to persist, including during periods of active bombardment of Gaza.

In sharp contrast, Spain’s decision is in line with mounting calls from global human rights bodies, the International Court of Justice and growing segments of European civil society demanding concrete action to end the slaughter in Gaza. The Spanish government’s stance reflects what many see as a shift towards principled foreign policy grounded in international law rather than geopolitical convenience.

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