The measures announced by the Spanish Government on Monday arrive after twenty -three months of genocide –viso and known in real time – and after many years of illegal occupation and apartheid against the Palestinian population.
They occur in a context in which the European Union continues to maintain relations, preferential agreements And alliances with Tel Aviv, and in which, of the twenty -seven, only Slovenia has banned the armament trade with Israel. The EU is one of Israel's largest commercial and diplomat partners in the world, which means that the countries that make it up to have tools to press. However, most still do not use them. Ireland, Belgium and Spain have
Until now, Spain has maintained arms, commercial and diplomatic relations with Israel, despite mass crimes. Spanish public opinion, reflected in the surveys, and the protests of important groups of civil society have been persuasive instruments for the Spanish government to begin to consider changes.
The points that are approved on Tuesday could have arrived much earlier. In addition to what is now announced by Spain, there are other necessary measures that countries can and must adopt before a genocide, as the United Nations Rapporteur has been underlining in these months, as requested by the International Court of Justice and as required by the Genocide Convention.
Social pressure and public opinion in surveys before the genocide have conditioned the Spanish government
The embargo
Among what was announced on Monday by the Spanish Government, “the legal and permanent prohibition to buy and sell weapons, ammunition and military equipment” to Israel. It is a necessary step that should have been adopted for a long time. Now it remains to be seen what surveillance mechanisms will be launched to guarantee it.
Embargoes exist to prevent crimes, to avoid them, not to naturalize them, to press their authors. Therefore, they are urgent as soon as indications arise. As indicated by the Genocide Convention, we must “sanction”, but also “prevent”. The logical order for the application of an embargo is its approval before major crimes. This has not happened here.
In 2024 and so far from 2025, according to official Israeli customs data, exports of Spain's military material to Israel were recorded. In addition, between February and May of this 2025 Spain increased its imports of “weapons and ammunition” of Israel, as this newspaper published last July.
Between October 2023 and the spring of 2025, Spain awarded more than 40 agreements for the purchase of military material to Israeli companies or its Spanish subsidiaries. In some cases, these contracts were formalized when there were tens of thousands of victims in Gaza.
In the measures now announced by the Government, it is not mentioned whether these purchase contracts, including those agreed with subsidiaries or mediators, will be canceled. “Everything indicates that what had to be imported has already arrived. The business is done,” says Alejandro Pozo, researcher at the Center of the Peace Studies.
For the rest, there are no references to the trade of dual use products and technologies or the maintenance of the Israeli military material used by the Spanish armed forces, for which they have occurred in these last two years automatic renewals for the acquisition of spare parts.
Nor has the suspension of joint military maneuvers with the Israeli army been announced, such as those that occurred last April.
Spain will prohibit imports of 'illegal settlements' but does not suspend commercial relations with Israel
Traffic
The Government also announces the prohibition of traffic through Spanish ships of ships with fuels destined for the Israeli army, but does not mention a formal embargo on the traffic or transford of armament to Israel through Spanish ports. Sanchez has assured that there is already a de facto embargo in this regard since 2024, but there is no measure established by law.
As an international investigation revealed in November 2024, Algeciras has served as a scale of ships from the US, with military material for Israel, now there are still maritime routes of supply to Israel with ships that make use of Spanish ports. If inspection mechanisms are not adopted, through them they could pass cargoes of military material not specified as such.
This media also reported in 2024 of the use of the American Rota base for the sending of weapons to Israel. The Defense Cooperation Agreement allows Washington not to reveal the final destination of the burden that transports through the military bases of Rota and Morón, despite the fact that it is Spanish territory.
This means that Armament Transit to Israel can continue through these points, even by plane, despite the fact that the Government will approve the “denial of entry to Spanish airspace to all those state aircraft that transport defense material for Israel.”
Spain does not approve all the measures demanded by the UN Assembly and the Court of The Hague
The trade of other products
For a long time to the UN relateraFrancesca Albanese, Ask countries that suspend all kinds of relations with Israel, since genocide continues to develop, as well as occupation and apartheid.
In addition, the International Court of Justice requested in July 2024 the states that puddle “Commercial and investment relations” that contribute to the Israeli occupation, and this was approved by the UN Assembly. Given this, we must bear in mind that the Israeli State is the maximum promoter of the occupation of Palestinian territory.
What Spain now announces is the prohibition of the importation of “illegal settlements” products in Gaza and the West Bank, but not the transit of these products. Nor has a suspension of its commercial relations with Israel raised, although there are many companies that contribute to the occupation, with which Spain trades.
There are also Spanish companies that do business with occupation. No sanctions have been mentioned to this type of companies.
Israel's participation in cultural events or sports competitions transmits a normalization message
Sanctions
Spain will approve “the prohibition of accessing Spanish territory to all those people who participate directly in the genocide, the violation of human rights and the crimes of war in the strip”, but has not specified what individuals would sanction. Nor have there been references to the possibility of suspending all research projects with Israel entities in Spanish universities.
Yes, the limitation of consular services to Spaniards residing in Israeli illegal settlements has been announced, but no sanctions are contemplated to nationals who provide help to maintain occupation, as demand The resolution of the UN Assembly approved a year ago.
At the diplomatic level, the suspension of all the relations of Spain with Israel has not been announced. After the accusation of “anti -Semitism” poured on Monday by the Israeli government, Spain has called for consultations to its ambassador.
From the Jurist platform By Palestine they have demanded “the rupture of diplomatic relations with Israel and the extension of the embargo on all commercial relations”, as well as support for demand for genocide in The Hague and other measures that guarantee accountability.
Another of the issues that has generated protests and mobilization in Spain is the presence of an Israeli team in the cycling return. Israel's participation in European sports competitions, in cultural events or in commercial agreements, after 23 months of genocide, transmits an unsustainable normalization message.
The Spanish government has not specified sanctions in this regard, nor the possibility of absent from competitions or competitions in case Israel's participation in them is not suspended. In fact, these days from the back they have been arrested or fined people who have participated in the protests against the return. That is, the sanctions in this case have been directed against people who mobilize against the naturalization and normalization of genocide.
We have the duty to ask ourselves what would have happened if it had reacted before; What can happen if it is not done now.
International obligations
Gaza genocide was already a chronicle announced in mid -October 2023, but no measures were adopted to prevent it or punish it, as required by the Genocide Convention. It should be analyzed this fact, to understand where the European Union is located. We have the duty to ask ourselves what would have happened if it had reacted before, what can happen if it is not done now.
International Law and Hague Courts offer Legal tools to governments to press Israel. Today, with tens of thousands of murdered people, with hundreds of thousands wounds or sick people because of the genocide, with cause necessary
The minimum is to demand all pressure actions that have not yet been adopted. As British surgeon pointed out this summer, just departure from Gaza, “we have to look at the mirror and ask ourselves every day if we are doing everything possible to stop this.”
