Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday night accused his Spanish counterpart, Pedro Sánchez, of having issued a “blatant genocidal threat” against Israel earlier this week.
The Spanish leader said Madrid “can’t stop Israel’s battle against Hamas terrorists because ‘Spain does not have nuclear weapons,’” the premier said. “That’s a blatant genocidal threat to the world’s only Jewish state.
“Apparently, the Spanish Inquisition, the expulsion of the Jews of Spain and the systematic mass murder of Jews in the Holocaust, is not enough for Sánchez,” continued Netanyahu. “Incredible.”
On Monday, announcing a series of series against Israel to “prevent genocide in Gaza,” Sánchez tried to explain why Madrid cannot stop the war against Hamas.
“Spain does not have nuclear weapons, aircraft carriers or vast oil reserves,” he said in his national address. “On our own, we cannot stop the Israeli offensive. But that does not mean we will stop trying.”
The Socialist Party leader, who has served as prime minister since 2018, said that “there are causes worth fighting for, even if achieving them is not solely in our hands.”
Sánchez went on to describe steps that he has taken over the past two years to put pressure on Jerusalem and to ease the suffering in the Strip.
He has not previously suggested military intervention in Gaza. His latest remarks, which some interpreted as leaving open the possibility of force, and even nuclear weapons, were not clarified by Spanish officials.
Spanish Prime Minister @sanchezcastejon expressed regret that Spain “doesn’t have nuclear bombs” to “stop the Israeli offensive. But that doesn’t mean we won't stop trying.”pic.twitter.com/lgCz2ZYJk7
— Amit Segal (@AmitSegal) September 11, 2025
On Tuesday, Spain banned Israel’s Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir from entry.
Madrid’s move came in the wake of Jerusalem’s sanctions targeting two Spanish Cabinet members due to their hostility toward the Jewish state.
Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares subsequently recalled Ana María Salomón, Spain’s envoy to Israel, for consultations.
Jerusalem’s action came on the same day that Sánchez presented nine steps to “prevent genocide in Gaza,” an allegation that Israel, the U.S. and the U.K. have denied.
Among other measures, the Spanish premier announced that Madrid would enshrine a royal decree in law to establish a comprehensive arms embargo, banning all military trade and technology exports to Israel.
One of the measures that could impact a wide swath of Israeli society states that “entry to Spain is prohibited for anyone directly involved in genocide, human rights violations or war crimes in the Gaza Strip.”
Spanish newspaper El País reported on Saturday that the ruling coalition was also planning to declare Netanyahu and other Israeli ministers persona non grata and prohibit their entry to the country.
