Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez condemned “terrorism in all its forms” on Tuesday on the second anniversary of the Hamas attack on Israel and urged an end to “the genocide” in Gaza.
Sánchez, one of the most vocal critics in Europe of Israel’s offensive in the Palestinian territory, decried the “terrible attacks” carried out by Hamas which sparked the war on October 7th 2023.
“It is a day to reiterate our strong condemnation of terrorism in all its forms, to call for the immediate release of the Israeli hostages,” the Socialist leader wrote on X.
“And to demand that (Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin) Netanyahu stop the genocide of the Palestinian people and open a humanitarian corridor,” he added.
Advertisement
Sánchez also reaffirmed that the two-state solution was the “only possible” way to end the decades-old Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Sánchez has called for Israel to be barred from international sporting events in response to the country’s offensive in Gaza and recently approved a “total” arms embargo on Israel.
Lawmakers were due to vote on this embargo on Tuesday.
But this was postponed to Wednesday so as not to coincide with the anniversary of the Hamas attack, according to Spanish media reports.
Israel’s embassy in Spain had criticised the plan to vote on the arms embargo decree on the Hamas attack anniversary, calling it “a cynical and reprehensible decision” in a letter released late on Monday.