The Prime Ministers of Spain and Belgium, Pedro Sanchez and Alexander De Croo, strongly criticized Israel’s military actions in the Gaza Strip during a joint visit to Egypt. “The indiscriminate killing of civilians, including thousands of boys and girls, is completely unacceptable,” Sánchez said at a press conference at the Rafah border crossing today. De Croo made a similar statement: “The killing of civilians must stop now (…) The destruction of the Gaza Strip is unacceptable.”
Sanchez also said it was time for “the international community, especially the EU, to recognize the State of Palestine once and for all.” If the EU does not recognize it, Spain “will make its own decision”, said the socialist politician.
The criticism provoked outrage in the Israeli government. On X (Twitter), the Prime Minister of Israel, Benjamin Netanyahu, strongly condemned the statements of the two Europeans. Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen ordered the ambassadors of Spain and Belgium to be summoned to issue a harsh reprimand. “We condemn the false statements by the prime ministers of Spain and Belgium that support terrorism,” Cohen said. He assured that Israel complies with international law and fights a murderous terrorist organization.