Over 300 Spanish artists call on PM to ban arms to 'Israel'
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Spain and Ireland have been engaging in discussions with other EU nations for months, pushing for a review of the EU-"Israel" Association Agreement.
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Spain's Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez speaks during the 'World in Progress Barcelona' Forum in Barcelona, on October 14, 2024. (AFP)
Over 300 Spanish intellectuals and artists have sent a letter to Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez, urging him to implement an arms embargo against "Israel", according to media reports on Tuesday.
As per EFE news, artists argue that as long as Spain maintains military relations with the occupation, it is considered complicit in the aggression on Gaza and Lebanon.
Sanchez is urged in the letter to immediately enforce a comprehensive embargo on arms supplies to the Israeli occupation. Among the signatories are renowned Spanish filmmakers Pedro Almodovar and Isabel Coixet, actresses Aitana Sanchez Gijon, Alba Flores, Iciar Bollain, singer Mikel Izal, and many others.
Sanchez was reminded that Spain's present administration describes itself as progressive and devoted to human rights, and hence must do more to protect the rights of Palestinians and Lebanese citizens.
Last week, Pedro Sanchez called on fellow European Union members to support Madrid and Ireland's request to suspend the bloc's free trade agreement with "Israel" due to its actions in Gaza and Lebanon.
Spain and Ireland have been engaging in discussions with other EU nations for months, pushing for a review of the EU-"Israel" Association Agreement, citing potential violations of the agreement's human rights clause by "Israel".
"Given the current events in the Middle East, it is urgent that the international community cease arms exports to the Israeli government," Sanchez stated after meeting with Pope Francis in Rome.
He further expressed his disapproval, saying, "I want to criticize and condemn the attacks by the Israeli armed forces on the United Nations mission in Lebanon."
UN expert calls Gaza genocide 'collective shame of century'
The UN's special rapporteur on the human rights situation in the occupied Palestinian territories has condemned "Israel's" ongoing genocide in the Gaza Strip as "the collective shame of the century," highlighting the international community's inability to defend Palestinian rights.
The Israeli occupation continues its genocidal war on the Gaza Strip, particularly in the northern regions, which have witnessed Israeli massacres since the war began a year ago.
The occupation has renewed its brutal aggression in northern Gaza as part of a systematic plan to forcibly displace its residents and destroy all aspects of life and infrastructure, resulting in dozens of martyrs in recent days.
Francesca Albanese made the statements in an X post on Sunday, after more than a year of Israeli bombardment that has destroyed Gaza, murdered tens of thousands of innocent people, and displaced nearly the entire population, often several times.
"In Gaza, the collective shame of the century continues unabated and unstopped, in defiance of every norm of international law and morale," she wrote.
Albanese expressed that "the Palestinians, exhausted by relentless attacks on their bodies and souls are abandoned to their tormentors."
In Gaza, the collective shame of the century continues unabated and unstopped, in defiance of every norm of international law and morale. The Palestinians, exhausted by relentless attacks on their bodies and souls are abandoned to their tormentors. Shocking images of summary… https://t.co/Ajn729G7DN
— Francesca Albanese, UN Special Rapporteur oPt (@FranceskAlbs) October 20, 2024
