Spain has lashed out at Israel for “terror” accusations, calling them “false and out of place” after Madrid criticized Tel Aviv for killing more than 14,000 Palestinians in the besieged Gaza Strip.
Spanish Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Albares condemned Israel’s allegations against prime ministers of Spain and Belgium as “unacceptable”, vowing “a response.”
Albares’ comments came hours after Israeli foreign minister Eli Cohen said Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez and Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo were “giving support to terrorism,” and summoned both nations’ ambassadors in Tel Aviv for a “harsh rebuke.”
Albares stressed that Israel’s “false” accusations were “especially serious” given the fact that Spain is representing the European Union as the current president of the EU Council, a position that will be handed over to Belgium on January 1, 2024.
Speaking with Spanish media, Albares had criticized “unbearable number of Palestinian victims, including children” killed by Israeli attacks during a tour of West Asia.
“This is not incompatible with the message we’ve been repeating since day one … the right to defend itself must be with the scrupulous respect toward international humanitarian law,” he had said.
