Spanish police have canceled a presentation by Dana Erlich, head of Israel’s embassy in Spain, that was scheduled for later this week at the Silken Indautxu Hotel in Bilbao, due to threats, Israel Hayom reported on Monday.
Flyers opposing her appearance read: “Zionists—not here, not anywhere! Cut all ties with Israel on the way to its dismantling.”
Instead of securing the event, local police yielded to the threats.
The incident comes amid a new low in bilateral relations and is in line with recent statements against Israel by the Spanish prime minister.
In a further sign of worsening ties, Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar on Monday blasted Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez, who earlier urged a boycott of Israel from all international competitions, likening its war against Hamas in Gaza to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
“An antisemite and a liar,” Sa’ar tweeted in Hebrew.
“Did Israel invade Gaza on October 7, or did the Hamas terror state in Gaza invade Israel and carry out the largest massacre of Jews since the Holocaust? Sánchez and his communist government are antisemitic and enemies of the truth,” Israel’s top diplomat said.
Speaking at an interparliamentary meeting of the Spanish Socialist Workers’ Party, which he has led as secretary-general since 2017, Sánchez said: “Why was Russia expelled after the invasion of Ukraine and Israel is not expelled after the invasion of Gaza? Our position is clear and unequivocal: until the barbarity ceases, neither Russia nor Israel should be in any more international competitions.”
The Guardian quoted Sánchez as citing the disruption of Sunday’s Vuelta cycling race, which was halted by protests against the Israeli team.
“I think that debate that’s begun after what happened here in Madrid yesterday should widen and spread to all corners of the world,” he said.
“It’s already happening in some parts of the world and we’ve seen how European governments are saying that as long as the barbarism continues, Israel can’t use any international platform to whitewash its presence. And I think that sports organizations need to ask themselves whether it’s ethical for Israel to keep taking part in international competitions,” per The Guardian.
In addition to the cancellation of Erlich’s presentation, Madrid announced last week that it would bar the entry of two Israeli politicians, National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich.
Several days ago, Sa’ar harshly criticized the Spanish government’s conduct and announced personal sanctions against members of its leadership. “It’s remarkable that Spain’s current leaders ignore what they did throughout history to the Jewish people,” Sa’ar said.
“One of the greatest acts of ethnic cleansing in history was the expulsion of all Jews from Spain, not to mention the Inquisition, not to mention the forced conversion of religion,” he added.
Originally published in Israel Hayom.
