Spain’s government is normalizing violence and targeting Israel - opinion

Spain’s hostility towards Israel is no accident and reflects two forces. First, a radical left-wing government dominated by factions that question Israel’s very existence. Second, a prime minister who governs as a political arsonist: an adventurer driven not by national interest, but by his own survival. Facing corruption scandals that reach even his family, Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez has turned Israel into a scapegoat and political weapon.

The consequences were on display at this year’s Vuelta a España cycling race. What should have been a celebration of sport turned into chaos, intimidation, and violence, and the visible collapse of Spain’s rule of law.

Street terrorism, once known as Kale Borroka during the worst years of ETA (the Basque terrorist group), has returned. But now it is different: it is tolerated, legitimized, and even encouraged by Spain’s own government. Radical groups — some linked to ETA and others to jihadist movements — attacked the race, while senior figures from Sánchez’s parliamentary majority joined them.

Cyclists were assaulted with thumbtacks, pushed off their bikes, and forced onto roads invaded at high speed. Race stages were disrupted and even cancelled. This was not protest. It was violence — and it was rewarded.

No team was singled out more aggressively than the Israeli cycling team. They faced not only the mobs, but also the hostility of the government itself. Ministers called for their expulsion. Sánchez praised the agitators. Rules of international sport were ignored.

The Union Cycliste Internationale protested, but the damage was done. Spain showed that violence against Israelis would be tolerated — even celebrated — at the highest levels of power.

This is not just about cycling. It is about the use of words as weapons. Sánchez and his allies have normalized terms like “genocide,” “extermination,” and “starvation” — none backed by facts or international courts.

We know where libel leads. The discourse that normalizes political violence against a minority — the Jewish minority — from the very government of the country, leads directly to hostility, aggression, and fear.

Spain’s opposition has not been clear. The largest party - the Partido Popular - condemns Hamas but repeats accusations against Israel. In practice, it has accepted Sánchez’s narrative. Only in Madrid, under a regional president and the city’s mayor, has the PP defended Israel firmly. The only consistently pro-Israel party nationally is VOX.

And yet, Spain is not Ireland. Here, despite the toxic rhetoric, there are still allies — in politics and the media — who defend Israel’s legitimacy and confront the government’s narrative.

Despite repeated warnings, some Spanish and international Jewish community leaders chose appeasement. Their contacts with officials were showcased to whitewash the government’s image, even as those same officials quickly turned to slander against Israel. Naïve and short-sighted, those contacts are now cynically used as proof that the government has “nothing against Jews” — only against Israel.

Diplomacy reveals the truth. Ambassadors have been withdrawn. Relations hover on the brink of rupture. Sánchez has unilaterally recognized a Palestinian state, imposed extraterritorial sanctions on Israel, and promoted boycotts in international institutions. Spain is isolating Israel — and itself.

Civil society still resists. The prominent pro-Israel group ACOM provides verifiable information to politicians, opinion leaders, and the media. It maintains a constant presence in traditional outlets and online, countering disinformation with facts.

But this visibility comes at a price. At the Vuelta, citizens waving Spanish and Israeli flags faced threats of lynching. Instead of stopping the aggressors, police evacuated the supporters and sent them home. The message was clear: in today’s Spain, showing support for Israel is dangerous.

ACOM has also turned to the courts, filing cases in the Audiencia Nacional against ETA-linked groups, BDS activists, and leftist parties in Sánchez’s coalition. Litigation has now reached the Supreme Court, naming even the Prime Minister and government ministers.

We, Spanish Zionist Jews, believe in the role of the Diaspora in supporting Israel, especially in today’s global campaign of hostility and delegitimization. That is where we can contribute most, and where we are most valuable.

We have no intention of surrendering Spain to radical antisemites. They may poison discourse, but they do not represent the Spanish majority. Spaniards are not antisemitic, even if their government panders to those who are.

Aliyah is always an option. But for now, our place is here, in Spain, where we will continue to resist intimidation and to contribute to Israel’s future effectively. This is not a retreat from Zionism; it is its fulfillment.

 Angel Mas is the President of ACOM, the main group in Spain in the fight against antisemitism and in favor of the relationships between Spain and Israel.

This op-ed is published in partnership with a coalition of organizations that fight antisemitism across the world. Read the previous article by David Siman-Tov.