Israel has been violating United Nations resolutions and international law for decades through its illegal occupation of the Palestinian territories and a system of apartheid that segregates and denies rights to the Palestinian population. In addition, it has imposed a blockade against Gaza since 2007, with periodic massacres and killings of the civilian population. However, Europe and the United States, among others, have maintained privileged relations with Israel over the years, with arms sales, preferential trade agreements and close collaboration, which has contributed to apartheid. And so, we have come this far.
Last July, the International Court of Justice demanded an end to the illegal Israeli occupation, pointed out the segregation suffered by the Palestinian population and asked UN Member States to suspend trade and investments that contribute to the illegal occupation. In September the UN General Assembly picked up the gauntlet of this ruling, with the same demands, through a resolution approved by a large majority.
The International Criminal Court is investigating Israel for war crimes and crimes against humanity and the International Court of Justice has issued two interim orders – which Israel has failed to comply with – in the context of the genocide lawsuit filed by South Africa. All of this, together with the reports of the United Nations commissions, has served to exert pressure, although insufficient, because the majority of Israel’s allied states have not collaborated as they should.
The Spanish vote in favor of the UN resolution forces us to ask the Government what measures it will adopt to comply with it
Has Spain announced measures to comply with the September UN Assembly resolution, which it voted in favor of?
Last September, the UN Assembly resolution – which demands the end of the illegal Israeli occupation within twelve months – passed with one hundred and twenty-four votes in favor, fourteen against and 43 abstentions.
The division of Europe was visible. Twelve countries of the European Union abstained, two voted against – Hungary and the Czech Republic – and thirteen in favor: Belgium, Cyprus, Spain, Estonia, Finland, France, Greece, Ireland, Latvia, Luxembourg, Malta, Portugal, Slovenia .
Spain supported the resolution, which demands the suspension of trade and investments that contribute to the illegal Israeli occupation. This forces us to ask the Spanish Government what measures it is going to adopt to comply with this suspension. The Norwegian Executive has asked companies in its country to avoid this type of commercial and business activities with Israel. Madrid has not yet made any public request to Spanish companies in this regard.
Has Spain imposed an arms embargo on Israel?
No. The President of the Spanish Government this week asked the international community to stop selling weapons to Israel. However, Spain has not imposed a formal arms embargo. To do so, it must modify the Arms Trade Law, a step that more than 500 organizations have requested before Congress, through the End Arms Trade with Israel campaign.
An arms embargo requires setting conditions and sanctions, which helps ensure compliance
Has Spain sent military material to Israel after October 7, 2023?
Yes. On December 5, the Foreign Minister, José Manuel Albares, stated in parliament that “since October 7, there have been no export operations of Spanish weapons to Israel.” However, that statement was not accurate.
As elDiario.es revealed in February, Spain did send military material to Israel in October and November 2023 – when there were already thousands of dead in Gaza – and continued to do so in December, January, February and April, although in these cases it was done with in order to later re-export it to the Philippines. In this way, a Spanish company benefited from an agreement with an Israeli arms company to sell in a third country, the Philippines.
The data on these exports appeared on the official foreign trade portal Comex, was analyzed by Center Delàs researcher Alejandro Pozo and verified by elDiario.es. According to the Spanish Government, these shipments corresponded to sales closed prior to October 7, 2023. Spain could have revoked or suspended them, but chose to maintain these exports for several more months.
Has Spain purchased military material from Israel since October 7, 2023?
Yes. The Spanish Ministry of Commerce assured in February that Spain had not adopted any measures to suspend this type of acquisitions. In April, the President of the Government, Pedro Sánchez, stated that Spain does not carry out any arms sales operations with Israel.
In a subsequent report, the Dèlas Center for Peace Studies noted that, “whether it was a lapse or not, [lo que dijo el presidente] “It was not true, because ammunition was exported in November and December, but also because Spain has not stopped acquiring weapons from Israeli companies.”
Last July, the Center Dèlas published a new report in which it denounces that Spain has allocated 1,027 million euros to acquire Israeli weapons since October 7, 2023.
The purchase of weapons from Israel contributes to making the occupation viable and reinforces companies involved in it
How can the purchase of Israeli weapons contribute to the illegal occupation?
The illegal occupation is very expensive and would be less viable without Israel’s arms exports. “Exports mean producing excess to lower the cost per unit of product. Making one tank is not the same as making ten, ten is cheaper. In exports of military material there is not only a commercial transaction, there is also a political component, of international relations: it is decided to whom it is sold, to whom not,” explains the researcher and expert from the Center Dèlas Alejandro Pozo, in conversation with elDiario .is.
“Israel exports a model. By acquiring their military equipment, what happens there is legitimized, production costs are lowered for Israeli companies, it contributes to making the occupation viable and it rewards the same companies that are directly involved in these actions in the Palestinian territories, because They are awarded contracts based on that experience acquired, with products tested in combat,” he points out.
The United Nations rapporteur for Palestine, Francesca Albanese, has been demanding an end to arms sales for some time. Here in Spain, various NGOs have asked the Government for a “comprehensive embargo”, which includes both exports, imports and acquisitions.
An embargo sets a specific horizon, can regulate purchases, and force other governments to do the same
Alejandro Pozo, researcher Center Dèlas
Is there a difference between the current situation and an arms embargo?
Yes. An embargo requires establishing conditions – what material is included in the embargo, what is not – and a sanctioning project, which helps guarantee compliance. It is a sanction in itself. Through an embargo, limits could be established not only on the export of weapons, but also on the acquisition and financing of the Israeli military industry.
“With an embargo, corresponding supervisory mechanisms are established, researchers and journalists would not have to be doing the scrutiny,” explains Pozo. “Until now there is a declaration of intent, we have to take a leap of faith, and we already know that some of the things the Government said in the past about sending weapons to Israel were not true.”
For the rest, an embargo “sets a specific horizon and is a tool that can force other governments to do the same,” he adds.
The world has learned that no amount of death and pain is enough to provoke a global response to hunger and genocide.
UN Rapporteur on the Right to Food
What new measures have been announced this week?
The UN Independent Commission of Inquiry – which has been investigating the situation since 2022 – has issued its conclusions this week, saying that countries are obliged by international law to end the illegal presence of Israel in the occupied Palestinian territories.
For her part, the United Nations rapporteur for Palestine, Francesca Albanese, has announced that she has launched an investigation into the role of companies and private entities in supporting the illegal Israeli occupation and genocide. All of this involves pressure measures. But in the face of these efforts, and unlike what happened with Russia, the majority of countries continue to put themselves in profile.
Faced with the new phase of destruction carried out by the Israeli Army in the north of Gaza – with almost daily massacres of civilians – the United Nations rapporteur for the right to food, Michael Fakhri, recalled at the UN headquarters that , “exactly one year ago I, among others, raised the alarm about the risk of genocide against the Palestinian people. Unfortunately, you did not take sufficient action and, as my colleagues and I predicted, Israel’s war turned out to be a genocidal campaign against the Palestinian people.”
The lack of action in these months has allowed the genocide to run its course. “What the world has learned is that no amount of death and pain is enough to trigger a global response to hunger and genocide,” Fakhri concluded. As the UN rapporteur, Francesca Albanese, has been repeating for months now, “Israel will not stop this madness until we make it stop.”
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