Madrid – The Palestinian issue has turned into a hot internal file that shakes the pillars of the Spanish government. The bold situations adopted by the Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez To support PalestineIt is recognized for its state to condemnGenocideShe did not succeed in the ruling coalition cracks, but rather opened the doors of a new confrontation inside the left camp, where multiple parties seek to score political points from the Gaza Gate.
And with the worsening corruption cases that strike The Social Socialist PartyThe government components entered a feverish race on “a narrative monopoly Palestine“In accusations of the allies yesterday, Sishes of symbolism and the absence of the real will, so that Gaza turns from an external issue to an internal conflict yard that threatens the stability of the government in Madrid.
Former Sanchez ally, Party “We were“The leftist, who was a major partner in the formation of the government coalition, turned into a sharp critical of him. In this context, the party’s Secretary -General, Eon Pillara, stated that” Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez’s cycle has ended “, accusing him of not taking full responsibility and taking” symbolic “positions towards genocide in Gaza.
This came after the meeting of the Podimus State Party Council, where Pillara has criticized the government over what it considered a series of wrong decisions during the past two years, coinciding with the disclosure of corruption cases that affected prominent figures in the Socialist Socialist Party.
Complete the period
Despite these challenges, Sanchez confirmed his intention to complete his term that extends until 2027, promising a transparent internal investigation on suspicions of corruption.
The Spanish media describes Sanchez as “steadfast man” or “survivor”, given his ability to overcome previous crises, the most important of which is when he reached power in 2018 after a parliamentary vote to block confidence from the former prime minister Mariano RajoyFollowing corruption cases that affected the conservative Popular Party.
In his first term, Sanchez formed a minority government with the support of “Bodimus” and national parties from the Basque and Catalonia region, and after the November 2019 elections, his party was unable to obtain the absolute majority, so he returned to a coalition with “Bodimus” under the name “progressive government”, supported by small regional parties that refrained from voting against him.
After winning a small majority, Sanchez took over The coalition government The second in January 2020. However, the results of the local elections in May 2023, which came disappointing for the Socialist Party in favor of the right parties, led him to dissolve parliament and call for early general elections.
In the July 2023 elections, no party got the majority, but Sanchez managed, despite its second place after the Popular Party, to constitute a new government with the support of the “Somar” coalition, which includes dissidents from “Bodimus” and other left -wing parties, along with the national parties, and thus obtained the confidence of Parliament last November.
However, the outbreak of the war on Gaza after a short period showed a sharp difference in the positions of the components of the coalition government, and opened the way to turn the Palestinian file into an internal competition between the left forces.
Ideological symbol
“The Palestinian issue turned into an ideological symbol within the Spanish political scene, especially among the left, as it has become a test of the sincerity of progressive slogans,” said the researcher in international relations at the University of Comblonste in Madrid, Amal Abu Warda.
In this context, the Sanchez government took firm steps, the most prominent of which was the official recognition of the State of Palestine on May 28, 2024, along with Ireland and Norway, which Sanchez described as a “historic decision” that enhances peace opportunities, and Spain hosted the Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas Last September, Sanchez was a guest at the Arab Summit in Baghdad last May, during which he called for a UN peace conference and an end to the siege on Gaza.
Last November, Sanchez announced during his meeting with Palestinian Prime Minister Mohamed Mostafa to allocate 75 million euros to support Palestinian Authority For two years, through the Spanish Agency for International Cooperation.
As for the European level, Spain called for the suspension of the partnership agreement between European Union Israel, and demanded that weapons export it and withdraw European financial support. Spain also supported the lawsuit filed by South Africa on Israel International Court of JusticeAnd she participated in a joint initiative calling on the court to evaluate the legality of the blockade imposed on Gaza.
Sanchez did not hesitate to describe what is going on in Gaza as “genocide“Gaza is bleeding in front of our eyes,” and that collusion with these massacres is a “betrayal of international law”, in a statement that sparked widespread controversy and threw shadows on the relations of Tel Aviv.
A square competing with my party
However, with the eruption of corruption scandals in the ranks of the Socialist Party, tension within the government has become more clear. Sanchez’s ally, “Somar” alliance, began to take a distance from him, and sought to show himself the credit for taking some steps in support of Palestine, which put him in the goal of criticism from home and abroad.
Abu Warda explains that “Somar tried to attribute to himself the credit in some symbolic situations, saying that it came from the pressure of his ministers inside the government, but he found himself in a critical position, between the distinction from the socialists and the unwillingness to bomb the coalition.”
On the other hand, the Bodimus Party continues to adopt more strive positions towards Israel, calling for the imposition of sanctions and severing diplomatic relations, accusing the government of being satisfied with statements without taking concrete steps, which gave him a broader move margin in political space as it is outside the executive formation.
Abu Warda concludes her speech to Al -Jazeera Net, that the Palestinian issue has become a “central square to test the credibility of the progressive discourse within the Spanish left, and a decisive standard for those who possess the initiative inside it”, noting that “the continued internal escalation may lead to the collapse of the balance within the coalition government, and opens the way for a wide political battle in the future of the Spanish left, and whoever has the confidence of its popular base in issues in issues International justice. “