Israel’s Minister for Diaspora Affairs and Combating Antisemitism Amichai Chikli on Tuesday called Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez “an enemy of the State of Israel” and “of Western civilization.”
He made the remark during a press briefing held by the Europe Israel Press Association and American Middle East Press Association.
However, Chikli went on to state that “we believe in the people of Spain.” Better days are ahead for relations between the two countries, he said, noting good relations with Spain’s right-wing Vox Party and center-right People’s Party, which are growing in power. “We don’t think that the people in Spain are aligned with the radical agenda of Sánchez,” he added.
The Spanish premier has taken an increasingly strident anti-Israel line following Hamas’s Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel, while degrading the level of diplomatic relations between Madrid and Jerusalem and instituting an arms embargo.
Pushing back on challenges to the Israeli government’s friendly relations with political parties considered by some as far-right, such as Vox and Sweden Democrats, Chikli said, “We don’t have time to waste. We are working with leaders who can identify the threat and challenge the threat” of radical Islamism that has led to antisemitic terror attacks throughout Europe.
Noting Sweden Democrats chair Jimmie Åkesson participated in a two-day antisemitism conference in Jerusalem and spent extended time at Yad Vashem, accusations of Jew hatred directed toward him are “a joke,” said Chikli.
Sweden Democrats apologized last year for past Nazi links.
Chikli pointed to other right-wing leaders, such as National Rally President Jordan Bardella of France, who has led efforts to distance the party from the historic antisemitism associated with its recent past, as friends to Israel.
But, Chikli said, carte blanche is not given to all parties with an anti-Islam stance, noting Germany’s AfD hasn’t given “a clear message regarding Hamas. We didn’t hear a clear message regarding Iran. We didn’t see them adopting the IHRA definition” of antisemitism.
The International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance working definition of antisemitism has been adopted by multiple governments and organizations.
“It’s a very popular party. It’s a right wing party. But we don’t have real ties with the AfD,” said Chikli. “It’s not that if you are against radical Islam, it’s enough. Not at all.”
Asked about current diaspora threats that inform Israeli government policy, Chikli referenced the increasingly perilous environment for Jews in Canada. Chikli said Jerusalem believes “there is a presence of Iranian Revolutionary Guards in Canada,” which is behind a series of shooting attacks on synagogues in Toronto and attacks elsewhere in the country.
“We sent a letter to Prime Minister [Mark] Carney a week ago. We sent another letter a month ago to the minister of the interior in Canada,” said Chikli. “In my personal view, the next disaster is going to happen in Canada.”
Chikli feared that terrorists in Canada “are much more equipped” than elsewhere and that Canada’s ban on Jewish community security forces carrying weapons will lead to a massacre, pointing to the lives likely saved in a recent attack on a synagogue in Michigan due to the reaction of an armed guard.
Meanwhile, security guards in Canada can only carry weapons under specific circumstances, and with a government license.
In Canada, “if they decide to go inside and start shooting people, the security forces of the Jewish community, they can’t do anything,” said Chikli.
