Maersk confirmed on Saturday that one of its container vessels was refused permission to dock at Spain's Algeciras port due to alleged weapons shipments for Israel, maintaining that no weapons were being transported to Israel.
"The cargo to be transshipped through the port does not include any military weapons or ammunition," according to Maersk's statement, quoted by the AFP news agency.
Reports from earlier in the week in El Pais had claimed that Spanish officials declared this ship and another Maersk vessel scheduled for later this month "will not stop in Spain" due to alleged weapons shipments bound for Israel.
"To gain clarity for future operations, we have consulted the Spanish authorities to understand why entry was denied for cargo no different than previous shipments that have routinely been transshipped through this port without incident," Maersk explained on Saturday.
"It is our understanding that Spain has in its discretion changed its criteria and is now rejecting vessels that carry anything military related going to, or from, Israel, notwithstanding such cargo being legal," it added.
The Spanish government has been vocal in its criticism of Israel’s war in Gaza, which followed the Hamas massacre in southern Israel on October 7, 2023. It has implemented restrictions on vessels carrying weapons to Israel and halted its arms exports to Israel.
Last November, Spain’s Ambassador to Israel was summoned by the Foreign Ministry after Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez claimed that "Israel is violating international law and is carrying out indiscriminate killings in Gaza."
In April, Sanchez criticized what he called Israel's "disproportionate response" in the Gaza war, saying it risks "destabilizing the Middle East, and as a consequence, the entire world".
Spain and Israel have also been at odds ever since Spain, Norway and Ireland formally recognized a Palestinian state this past May.
The Palestinian Authority (PA) has long urged countries to recognize “Palestine” as a means of bypassing direct talks with Israel.