Spain Recognizes 'Israel's Right To Defend Itself'

Spain's ministry of foreign affairs issued a statement recognizing “Israel's legitimate right to defend itself” given the recent violence across the border with Gaza, forgetting to mention the high-end rockets launched into the strip.

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“The Government condemns the rocket attacks against Israel and firmly calls for the Palestinian factions in Gaza to definitely cease these hostile acts against the Israeli population,” reads the statement. “The Government recognizes Israel's legitimate right to defend itself and asks Israel for containment in the retaliation against those attacks, avoiding to cause more victims among civilians.”

The statement doesn't specifically refer to the rockets launched against the Gaza Strip, in which a young pregnant woman and her toddler were killed, nor the cultural center bombed by the Israeli occupation forces.

It also reaffirmed its commitment to alleviate the “dramatic humanitarian situation in the Strip” trough negotiations based on the two-state solution, in which the parts would coexist in “peace and security,” regarding it as the “only way leading to a long-lasting solution to the conflict between Israelis and Palestinians.”

The government also greeted the UN and Egypt's efforts to end the “dangerous surge” in the Gaza Strip last week.

A Palestinian official reportedly confirmed that "Egyptian efforts managed to restore calm between Palestinian factions and Israel” on Thursday. There were no additional attacks since then, but Israeli officials denied the claim that both sides had reached a ceasefire.  

But other regions in Spain have been friendlier with the Palestinian struggle. In June, Valencia became the largest city in the world to declare itself an “Israeli apartheid-free zone,” refraining from any contract or cultural event with Israeli authorities or companies.

Madrid condemned Israel’s “disproportionate and indiscriminate use of force… against Palestinian civilians” and called for an “immediate end” to the “illegal siege” suffocating 2 million people in Gaza.

Barcelona's city council called for a comprehensive arms embargo on Israel and called on the Spanish state to endorse it. Also, the Catalan cities of Terrassa and Badalona joined the calls by their capital city and demanded Spain and other European governments stop selling arms to Israel.

Pamplona expressed its support for Gazans participating in the Great Return March, calling on European governments to cut diplomatic ties with Israel and passed a resolution supporting the right of Palestinians to return to their home.

“When central governments fail to protect human rights, city councils shoulder an immense responsibility and have the opportunity to play a historic role on the side of justice,” said Ana Sanchez, a member of the Spanish Boycott National Committee (BNC).

Trebujena, a small town in Andalusia, became an Apartheid Free Zone last month as well.