The war in Gaza polarizes Spanish politics: this is how each party positions itself

The War in Gaza, after the Hamas terrorist attack on Israeli territory and the subsequent counteroffensive by Israel, has sown division in the international community, which is very polarized on this issue.

Oliver Thansan
Oliver Thansan
10 October 2023 Tuesday 16:22
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The war in Gaza polarizes Spanish politics: this is how each party positions itself

The War in Gaza, after the Hamas terrorist attack on Israeli territory and the subsequent counteroffensive by Israel, has sown division in the international community, which is very polarized on this issue. A polarization that is also transferred to the political parties of the Spanish and Catalan sphere, in the midst of negotiations for the investiture of Pedro Sánchez. All this with a clear trend. The right-wing formations are more on the Israeli side while the left focuses on the occupation suffered by the Palestinian people. In the middle, the Government and the PSOE try to maintain a balance between condemning the actions of Hamas and concern for the fate of the Palestinian people.

The acting Government condemns the “terrorist act” of Hamas, but at the same time, it was, along with Ireland and Luxembourg, one of the first EU countries to request the immediate restitution of European humanitarian aid to Palestine to revoke a first decision to suspend that aid. Despite everything, the Executive rejects the accusations of equidistance that come from the right and emphasizes that its only objective is peace in the Middle East. Furthermore, he asks the PP to stop its criticism and to be by his side in a critical situation.

Following the line of the government's position, and in the face of the PP's accusations of lack of forcefulness in condemning the attacks, the PSOE has asked that concern for the Palestinian people not be confused with coexistence with terrorism. He also adds that international politics depends on the president and not on other formations in reference to Unidas Podemos, a junior partner of the Executive.

Sumar stands in solidarity with the victims on both sides and shares with the government the opposition to withdrawing humanitarian aid to Palestine with more vehemence. He went so far as to accuse the EU of betraying its own fundamental principles. Furthermore, he demands that Israel end "apartheid and occupation" and create a viable Palestinian state in accordance with UN resolutions. Sumar personalities attended the protests in Madrid to show their solidarity with Palestine.

The Popular Party seeks to highlight the divisions between the two government partners by seeking contradictions and ensuring that some do not condemn terrorist acts and others try to justify them. From the PP they emphasize that terrorism cannot coexist with liberal democracy and that, therefore, the equidistance that they attribute to the Government is not an option. They also regret the lack of presence of Spain in the agreement of Italy, the United Kingdom, France, Germany and the United States, which on Monday positioned themselves firmly on Israel's side and demand responsibility from the Government.

In Vox they describe the government as “garbage full of hate and cruelty” without further ado. From the far-right formation, they denounce that Pedro Sánchez's Executive "applauds beasts" and that Sumar does not condemn the Hamas attack, and they assure that they do not want to have anything to do with those who "launder terrorists."

The Government of the Generalitat and ERC condemn the attacks against the civilian population in Israel, regretting the victims caused, and positioning themselves on the side of all the victims of the conflict. They also take the opportunity to appeal for increased efforts for peace and the cessation of violence.

For its part, Junts per Catalunya condemns the Hamas terrorist attack against Israel, and the terrorist organization's attacks against civilians for the simple fact of being Israelis. As well as the violence exercised against the civilian population. Likewise, they also recognize Israel's right to have its own state, but urge dialogue for the constitution of the two states to resolve the conflict.

In the CUP, solarization with the Palestinian cause translates into the call for different protest actions in different locations against apartheid and the ethnic cleansing that Israel applies to Palestine.

Ciutadans asks the Parliament to condemn the terrorist act against the Israeli population and rejects the equidistance between a terrorist organization and a democratic government of law that defends its territory. For this reason, he criticizes ERC and Podemos for being equidistant, and the CUP for "aligning" with Hamas.

The Basque Nationalist Party condemns the Hamas attack and calls for the unconditional release of those kidnapped by the organization. It also appeals to the United Nations, the European Union and the rest of the international community to intervene and end the massacre in Israel and Palestine and to work on a definitive and lasting solution to the conflict.

EH Bildu is committed to dialogue and negotiations by the international community to achieve a lasting peace that puts an end to the occupation against Palestine and points out that the world is silently witnessing the genocide of Palestine.

The Galician nationalists show their support for the Palestinian people and demand that the peace agreements between the two countries and the UN resolutions against the "apartheid" policy that is being applied in Palestine be fulfilled. They ask for an immediate ceasefire and for negotiations to begin to avoid more victims.

Navarrese conservatives condemn the Hamas attacks and describe them as barbarism without any possibility of justification, while expressing solidarity with the "multiple" victims.