Diplomatic relations between Spain and Israel reached a new low on Thursday as the Spanish government formally summoned Israel’s top envoy in Madrid, AFP reported.
Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Albares announced the move as a protest against the ongoing detention of a Spanish national who was part of the recent flotilla that attempted to violate the Israeli naval blockade of the Gaza Strip.
The dispute centers on Saif Abu Keshek, a Spanish citizen of Palestinian Arab origin, who was apprehended alongside Brazilian national Thiago Avila. Both activists were participants in the Global Sumud Flotilla, a project intended to bypass the Israeli blockade on Gaza. An Israeli court recently extended their detention until Sunday, disregarding international calls for their immediate release.
The Israeli Navy intercepted the flotilla last Wednesday. The convoy, which departed from several countries including Turkey, Spain, and Italy, included more than 100 vessels and around 1,000 participants attempting to breach Israel's blockade of Gaza, claiming they wanted to deliver humanitarian supplies.
Upon intercepting the flotilla, the Navy discovered - as in the cases of previous flotillas - that it was not carrying “humanitarian aid" for Gaza as its organizers had claimed.
The boarding of the flotilla took place in international waters off the coast of Greece. Organizers claimed that armed Israeli personnel damaged equipment aboard the ships, leaving the vessels unable to operate and without communication.
Addressing the Spanish parliament on Wednesday, Foreign Minister Albares used strong language to describe the situation.
“We again summoned Israel’s charge d’affaires to convey to her how unacceptable and intolerable it is to extend the detention of our citizen," he said.
While most participants of the flotilla were deported to Europe, Abu Keshek and Avila were taken into custody. Rights organizations claim the arrests were unlawful and allege that the detainees have faced mistreatment.
The Israeli Foreign Ministry has noted that both men remained in Israel for questioning by law enforcement authorities, as both are connected to the Popular Conference for Palestinians Abroad (PCPA), an organization under US sanctions for alleged ties to Hamas.
The summoning of the Israeli envoy comes amid longstanding tensions between Israel and Spain, which began with the Gaza war and have continued since.
In November of 2023, Spain’s Ambassador to Israel was summoned by the Foreign Ministry after Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez claimed that "Israel is violating international law and is carrying out indiscriminate killings in Gaza."
In April of 2024, 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".
A month later, Albares advocated for international sanctions against Israel, citing the ongoing conflict with Hamas in Gaza.
More recently, the Director General of the Foreign Ministry, Eden Bar Tal, held a reprimand call with the head of the Spanish Embassy in Israel, Francisca Pedrós.
The conversation took place in response to a shocking antisemitic display in which an effigy of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was detonated in El Burgo, a small town near the southern city of Malaga.
Netanyahu also recently accused Spain of exhibiting hostility towards Israel and announced the removal of Madrid from the international mechanism overseeing the Gaza ceasefire.