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Israel-Spain relations

Migrants run from Spanish police officers after crossing from Morocco into the Spanish enclave of Ceuta, July 31, 2026. (AP Photo/Antonio Sempere)
August 1, 2026, 10:38 am
Israel’s UN envoy sparks Spain spat with accusation of ‘colonial enclaves’ in Africa
Danon’s criticism over Ceuta migrant crisis fuels conspiracy theories accusing Jerusalem of helping orchestrate incursion and draws a rebuke from Israel’s ambassador in Madrid
By ToI Staff
A pro-Palestinian, anti-Israel activist sprays the phrase "destroy Israel" in the Basque language on the side of a light rail carriage manufactured by CAF for the Tel Aviv light rail's Purple Line, in Beasain, Spain, in a video from June 4, 2026. (Screenshot/X, used in accordance with Clause 27a of the Copyright Law)
June 14, 2026, 5:38 pm
Anti-Israel activists in Spain vandalize carriages made for Tel Aviv Light Rail
Protesters smash windows with hammers, cover front of carriages with red paint; Israel’s NTA says manufacturer CAF repairing damage, incident won’t delay progress of Purple Line
By ToI Staff
People gather during a pro-Israel demonstration in front of the Israeli Embassy in Madrid, Spain, Thursday, May 20, 2021. Banner reads in Spanish: "No to antisemitism." (AP Photo/Manu Fernandez)
June 11, 2026, 11:49 am
Spain reports 86% rise in antisemitism as total hate incidents soar to all-time high
Spanish government defines antisemitic incidents as acts of hatred or violence targeting Jews and Israelis, even as Madrid cements itself as one of Europe’s harshest Israel critics
By Shira Li Bartov
A Basque police officer beats a member of the Global Sumud Flotilla upon their arrival at Bilbao Airport on May 23, 2026. (Idurre Etxaburu / AFP)
May 24, 2026, 9:26 pm
Thousands protest in Bilbao over Spanish police’s abuse of Gaza flotilla activists
Some 2,000 march in Basque city after cops filmed beating returning activists at airport; Israel summons Spanish diplomat for explanation of Madrid’s ‘hypocrisy’
By Reuters, Nava Freiberg and ToI Staff
A Basque police officer beats a member of the Global Sumud Flotilla upon their arrival at Bilbao Airport on May 23, 2026. (Idurre Etxaburu / AFP)
May 24, 2026, 12:09 am
Spanish police beat and detain returning Gaza flotilla activists amid clashes at airport
Cops filmed hitting anti-Israel activists and supporters with batons and dragging them on floor. Violence comes days after global outcry, including from Madrid, over Ben Gvir’s taunting of bound, kneeling detainees
By AFP and ToI Staff
Israel's Ambassador to the US, Yechiel Leiter, listens during a meeting with US President Donald Trump, Lebanon's Ambassador to the US, Nada Hamadeh Moawad, and Leiter, at the White House in Washington, DC, on April 23, 2026. (Brendan SMIALOWSKI / AFP)
May 10, 2026, 4:35 pm
Israeli envoy takes rare swipe at US Jewish groups for cosponsoring Spanish exhibit
Yechiel Leiter says partnering with embassy for show on Jewish life in Moorish Spain ‘risks lending legitimacy to government working to vilify Israel’; World Jewish Congress responds: Disengagement not the answer
By Jacob Magid
Spain's Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez gestures as he speaks during a press conference in Beijing, China, April 14, 2026. (AP/Ng Han Guan)
April 15, 2026, 6:52 am
Israeli legal advocacy group files ICC case against Spanish PM over exports to Iran
Shurat HaDin accuses Pedro Sanchez’s government of providing ‘components required by the regime in Tehran and its proxies for military purposes’
By AFP and ToI Staff
An effigy of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu before and after being exploded in El Burgo, Spain on April 5, 2026. (X, used in accordance with Clause 27a of the Copyright Law)
April 12, 2026, 12:08 pm
Netanyahu effigy blown up in Spanish town festival; Israel summons envoy
Israel accuses Spain’s prime minister of incitement for the ‘antisemitic hatred on display’ during Easter event often referred to as the ‘Burning of Judas’
By Reuters and ToI Staff
Personnel work at the US-led Civil-Military Coordination Center (CMCC), in the southern town of Kiryat Gat, on November 19, 2025. (Ahikam Seri / AFP)
April 10, 2026, 6:26 pm
‘Anti-Israel obsession’: Israel boots Spanish representatives from Gaza ceasefire HQ
FM Sa’ar: Spain has ‘lost any ability to serve as a useful actor’ at CMCC; Netanyahu says he won’t allow countries to ‘wage a diplomatic war’ without paying a price
By Lazar Berman
Spanish ambassador to Israel, Ana Salomon Perez, left, Per Egil Selvaag, Norwegian ambassador to Israel and Sonya McGuinness, Irish ambassador to Israel watching a movie of female soldiers being abducted on October 7, 2023, from Nahal Oz base at the Foreign Ministry in Jerusalem, after the three states called for Palestinian statehood. May 23, 2024. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)
March 11, 2026, 5:43 pm
Spain permanently withdraws ambassador to Israel as rift deepens
Madrid announces envoy’s position has been terminated; foreign ministry says embassy in Tel Aviv will be led by charge d’affaires for foreseeable future
By Reuters and Lazar Berman
A pro-Palestinian demonstrator holds a banner reading: 'Boycott Israeli apartheid' during a protest in Madrid, Spain, Saturday, Oct. 4, 2025. (Bernat Armangue/AP Photo)
January 4, 2026, 2:17 pm
Daily Briefing Jan. 4: Day 821 – Will Spain’s Israel boycott set precedent for other countries?
Diaspora affairs reporter Zev Stub discusses Spanish embargo and Israeli immigration stats; reporter Diana Bletter reviews life in Kiryat Shmona and scientific research highlights
By Jessica Steinberg, Zev Stub and Diana Bletter
A view of Esh Kodesh, an Israeli outpost in the West Bank, on December 14, 2025. (Zain JAAFAR / AFP)
December 24, 2025, 9:55 pm
14 countries condemn Israeli approval of new West Bank settlements
France, Britain, Germany and others say authorization of 19 sites is illegal under international law, warn unilateral actions in West Bank could derail fragile Gaza ceasefire
By AFP and Jeremy Sharon
Rioters break the shop window of a Starbucks during anti-Israel demonstrations in Barcelona on October 15, 2025. (AP Photo/Joan Mateu Parra)
October 16, 2025, 11:53 am
Anti-Israel rioters break store windows, light fires as thousands march in Barcelona
Some 15,000 protest Gaza war despite truce, hold signs calling peace plan a ‘farce’; protesters gather outside Israeli basketball team’s hotel, try to block way to stadium
By ToI Staff
Spain's Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez addresses the Spanish parliament in Madrid on July 9, 2025. (JAVIER SORIANO / AFP)
October 8, 2025, 11:08 pm
Spanish parliament approves arms embargo on Israel
Vote enshrines law that bans all weapons deals, outlaws the transit of jet fuel with potential military use and bars advertising products coming from Israeli settlements
By AFP and ToI Staff
An Elbit Systems' staff member looks at his phone at the Eurosatory international land and airland defence and security trade fair, in Villepinte, a northern suburb of Paris, June 13, 2022. (Emmanuel Dunand/AFP)
October 5, 2025, 8:02 am
Spain keeps scrapping arms deals, but Israel’s defense trade with Europe may be salvageable
Madrid’s position is an outlier, likely a product of internal politics, experts say; rest of NATO unlikely to cut off a top weapons supplier just as it looks to rearm against Russia
By Stav Levaton
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