Israel is intensifying its retaliatory measures, both diplomatically and digitally, against Ireland, Spain, and Norway as they gear up to formally acknowledge the statehood of Palestine. The Israeli foreign minister, Yisrael Katz, reacted lividly to the initial announcement from these three powers, labelling it as a “display of foolishness” with the potential for “severe repercussions”.
The public confirmation from Dublin, Madrid, and Oslo of their recognition of the Palestinian state is anticipated this Tuesday. Israel has been mounting pressure on these governments in the past few days. Their representatives in Israel were all made to witness videos of the October 7th assault on Israel, which ignited the Gaza conflict, and then faced a dressing down from Israel’s foreign office. The Israeli press recorded Irish ambassador Sonya McGuiness and her Spanish and Norwegian counterparts viewing the footage.
Ireland’s Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Foreign Affairs Michael Martin regarded such treatment of diplomats as “ill-suited and very incorrect”. However, the Israeli administration has hinted that this may not be the end of their measures against Ireland.
Israel’s reaction has manifested in the form of flashy internet videos targeting Ireland, Spain, and Norway, framing their support for Palestine as being in line with Hamas. A video released on the X platform, addressed to Irish Prime Minister Simon Harris, juxtaposed apparent imagery of Hamas militants with traditional Irish dancing accompanied by folk tunes.
Reacting to another video, Spain’s Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares, declared it “abhorrent” for exploiting flamenco, a symbol of Spanish culture, in the video. The posts address Ireland, Spain, and Norway’s decision to back a Palestinian state, as supporting terrorism according to a statement by Mr. Katz. Comparable videos were also targeted at Norway and Spain, the latter featuring flamenco dancing.
The relationship between Spain and Israel has been fraught for several months. Pedro Sánchez, the Spanish Socialist Prime Minister, has been a major detractor amongst the EU of Israel’s reaction to the attack that occurred on October 7th. High-ranking officials in Podemos, the far-left party which previously partnered in a coalition government with Sánchez’s socialists, have frequently demanded the trial of Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu for human rights breaches.
The course towards declaring support for a Palestinian state, set to happen during a cabinet gathering, has led to further destabilisation of the Spain-Israel relationship. In relation to her endorsement of said decision, Yolanda Díaz, Spain’s Deputy Prime Minister from the left-leaning Sumar group, declared: “Palestine will be free, from the river to the sea.” The Israeli administration condemned her statement, viewing it as anti-Semitic.
Conversely, Margarita Robles, Spain’s Defence Minister, commented to a journalist that a real genocide was unraveling in Gaza. It’s the first usage of such terminology by a socialist member of Sánchez’s cabinet.
Israel has taken escalated diplomatic steps, confirming that the Spanish consulate in Jerusalem is forbidden from performing consular duties or offering consular services to Palestinian inhabitants of the occupied West Bank.
As Mr Katz posted on X, “The era of the Inquisition has ended.” The Jewish people possess a sovereign and autonomous state today, and no one will coerce us to change our faith or jeopardise our existence – we will retaliate against those who hurt us.”
On Monday in Brussels, Spanish, Irish and Norwegian foreign ministers convened, and consented to delay any reaction to Israeli measures until a future date.
Previously this month, the Spanish government forbade docking permission for a Danish-flagged vessel transporting Indian weapons to Haifa in Israel. According to Mr Albares, Spain has never before denied access to a vessel for such a reason.