Spanish Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares announced on Monday that his country will provide an additional €500,000 to the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) to support its efforts to investigate human rights violations and war crimes in the Gaza Strip.

This came during his presentation of the new foreign action plan for the period 2025-2028, which was approved by the Spanish government on April 1, before the Foreign Relations Committee of the Spanish Parliament.

Albares explained that his country emphasized during the International Court of Justice sessions the need for Israel to comply with international law and international humanitarian law, and that Israel must cooperate with United Nations institutions and meet the basic needs of the Palestinian people.

He added, "The situation in Gaza is unacceptable in any way. Israel, by preventing humanitarian aid from entering Gaza for weeks, has caused an unprecedented famine."

The Spanish minister stressed the need to deliver urgent humanitarian aid to save the lives of innocent Palestinian civilians, affirming that his country stands ready to send aid as soon as the appropriate conditions allow.

Since March 2, Israel has closed the Gaza Strip's crossings to the entry of food, relief, medical aid, and goods, causing a significant deterioration in the humanitarian situation for Palestinians, according to government, human rights, and international reports.

In early March, the first phase of a ceasefire and prisoner exchange agreement between Hamas and Israel concluded. The agreement, which went into effect on January 19, 2025, was brokered by Egypt and Qatar and supported by the United States, and the Palestinian movement adhered to it.

However, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who is wanted by the International Criminal Court, evaded the start of the second phase and resumed the genocide in Gaza on March 18, in deference to the most extreme faction within his right-wing government, to further his own political interests, according to Hebrew media.

With full American support, Israel has been committing genocidal crimes in Gaza since October 7, 2023, leaving more than 170,000 Palestinians dead or wounded, most of them children and women, and more than 11,000 missing.