Spain calls for halting arms sales to Israel

Spanish Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares called for an end to arms sales to Israel due to its violations in the Gaza Strip, as European foreign ministers discussed possible measures against Israel for human rights violations in the Gaza Strip.

In an interview with Al Jazeera on Tuesday, Albares stressed that Israel's human rights violations in Gaza cannot continue to be ignored, noting that the European Union believes in a two-state solution.

He stressed that his country would not allow ships carrying weapons to Israel to dock in its ports, and proposed suspending any arms sales to Tel Aviv.

He also called for an end to the war on the Gaza Strip, affirming Spain's commitment to the rulings of the International Court of Justice in The Hague and the International Criminal Court, saying, "We will respect international law," referring to the International Criminal Court's issuance of arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Galant for committing war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.

The Spanish Foreign Minister expressed his country's support for European Union legislation regarding products from illegal Israeli settlements.

Last May, Ireland became the first European Union country to take legislative steps to ban trade with Israeli companies operating in the occupied Palestinian territories. The Irish Cabinet approved a bill aimed at preventing the import of goods and services from Israeli settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem, which are illegal under international law.

Possible European measures

In this context, European Union foreign ministers are discussing 10 potential measures against Israel to punish it after it was found to have violated the cooperation agreement between the two sides on human rights grounds in Gaza.

These measures include suspending the agreement entirely, limiting trade relations, imposing sanctions on Israeli ministers, imposing an arms embargo, and halting visa-free travel to the European Union.

Discussions will largely depend on how Israel fulfills its promise to the European Union to improve humanitarian access to Gaza, after EU foreign policy chief Kaya Kallas announced Thursday that an agreement had been reached with her Israeli counterpart, Gideon Sa'ar, to open more crossings and allow more food into Gaza.

The European Union did not agree to review the cooperation agreement until Israel resumed its war on Gaza following the collapse of a truce last March.