Following on the heels of parliaments in Sweden and the United Kingdom, the Spanish Congress voted by 319 votes, with just two against and one abstention, in favour of a proposal to “urge the government to recognise the state of Palestine as a subject of international law”. Tuesday’s vote means Spain becomes one of the few European countries to move towards formal recognition of a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
In the past, officials in the government of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had called in ambassadors, admonishing them for daring to recognise a people and land that the entire apparatus of the Israeli government has tried to suppress and keep under heel.
The reality, though, is that those diplomatic reprimands are not worth the paper they were written on, have no moral standing and come from a government that likely committed war crimes when it invaded the Gaza Strip this summer.
What is also becoming increasingly apparent in the international community — so much so that Netanyahu and his right-wing rabble cannot see the writing on the wall — is that the tide of sympathy or support that European countries may have traditionally felt towards Israel, has now most definitely turned to the just Palestinian cause. Spain’s recognition of Palestine is just another just blow to Israel and its well-cultivated relationship and reliance on Washington. Bravo, Spain, bravo.
