Spain, which has publicly criticized Israel’s unpleasant in Gaza, has terminated a commitment to purchase 1,680 anti-tank weapons and 168 fire posts from Israeli defense firm Rafael, according to Spanish media. According to the top-selling Spanish newspaper El Pais, which cited unnamed government sources, the deal was worth 287.5 million euros ($ 327 million ). The products was to be produced in Spain under a license from Rafael. Sources from the Colonial defense ministry told AFP that the government “has begun a method to revoke licenses of Jewish nature” and was working to reorient its procurement processes” with the aim of achieving greater modern independence and autonomy.” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s state was enraged last year by Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez’s critiques of the offensive in Gaza. Following pressure from the Socialist-led administration’s far-left partnership partner Sumar, Spain abruptly canceled a commitment to purchase guns from another Israeli firm, IMI Systems, in late April. Israel immediately denounced the action. The leader of Sumar, Labor Minister Yolanda Diaz, stated at the time that Spain may not participate in “business with a murderous state… that is massacring the Arab people.” Following Hamas’s assault on Israel on October 7, 2023, Sanchez’s authorities announced that it had stopped selling weapons to Israel. However, according to Center Delas, a think tank based in Barcelona that specializes in security and defense, the government has awarded Jewish organizations 46 contracts for more than 1 billion euros, based on information that was made available through a public tenders website.
