Israel releases 39 Palestinians Israel releases 39 Palestinians

Sumar spokesperson Ernest Urtasun said in a press statement that as part of the government formation talks, they have been working on the need for Spain to recognize the state of Palestine.

Ernest Urtasun emphasized the Spanish parliament's decision to recognize the state of Palestine in 2014, and stated that PSOE leader and Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez has supported the implementation of this decision and that they attach importance to the recognition of the Palestinian state as part of the government formation agreement.

Urtasun also emphasized that the priorities in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict are a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip and the delivery of humanitarian aid, and called on the European Union to exert diplomatic pressure on Israel.

He also noted that Israel is violating international law and human rights in the Gaza Strip and that the EU should suspend its bilateral agreements with Israel, especially in the arms trade.

"WE MUST STOP ARMS SALES TO ISRAEL"

Urtasun shared that Spain has an arms trade with Israel worth approximately 130 million euros and argued that no matter how small this figure is, arms sales to Israel should be stopped.

He also called for war crimes charges against the occupation of Ukraine, saying, "Although we condemn Hamas' attacks, this does not justify Israel's war crimes in the Gaza Strip. We want those in the Israeli army who commit war crimes to be punished."

Urtasun said the situation in Gaza is dramatic and the EU must take a firm stance against the Israeli government to ensure a ceasefire and the delivery of humanitarian aid. Once this is achieved, he stressed, the next step should be the recognition of a Palestinian state and a genuine peace process.

It is worth recalling that Sweden was the first country in the EU to recognize the state of Palestine in 2014. In addition, countries such as Hungary, Poland and Slovakia also recognized Palestine as a state before becoming EU members.

In Spain, while the government formation talks are expected to conclude positively this week, it is noteworthy that the separatist Catalan political parties are pushing for an amnesty for Catalan politicians, which stands as the biggest obstacle to the government formation negotiations.