Spain has refused to allow a ship carrying arms to Israel to dock at a Spanish port, Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Albares announced. The vessel reportedly contains 27 tonnes of explosive material from India and may have avoided entering Israel via the Red Sea, where Yemen’s Houthis exert control.
“This is the first time we have taken such action because it is the first instance we’ve detected a ship with arms for Israel attempting to dock at a Spanish port,” Albares stated in Brussels on Thursday. “This policy will be consistently applied to any ship carrying arms to Israel seeking to dock at Spanish ports. The Middle East requires more peace, not more weapons,” he added.
Though Albares did not specify the ship’s details, Transport Minister Oscar Puente identified it as the Marianne Danica, which had requested permission to dock at Cartagena on May 21.
India-Israel Arms Connection
According to El Pais, the Danish-flagged Marianne Danica is transporting 27 tonnes of explosive material from Chennai, India, to Haifa, Israel. India is the largest purchaser of Israeli weapons, some of which are used in conflict zones in eastern and central India, as well as in disputed Kashmir. Over the past decade, India has imported approximately $2.9 billion in military equipment from Israel, including combat drones, missiles, radars, and surveillance systems. Although India and Israel normalized diplomatic ties in 1992, military exports from Israel to India began in the 1960s.
Israeli arms have supported India in conflicts against China and Pakistan. In 2018, Elbit Systems, a major Israeli military company, partnered with Indian conglomerate Adani Group to manufacture Hermes 900 drones in southern India, which are then exported back to Israel. Some of these drones have reportedly been sent by India to Israel for use in its ongoing Gaza invasion.
The refusal to permit the ship to dock coincides with a dispute between Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez’s Socialist Party and its coalition partner, the hard-left Sumar party, regarding another ship, the Borkum, which is expected to dock in Cartagena on Friday. Pro-Palestinian groups allege that the Borkum is transporting arms to Israel, prompting Sumar to call for its denial. However, Puente clarified that the Borkum is carrying military materials to the Czech Republic, not Israel.
Spain has been one of Europe’s most vocal critics of Israel’s actions in Gaza and is advocating for other European nations to recognize a Palestinian state. Spain ceased arms sales to Israel following its military offensive in Gaza.
Context of the Conflict
The Palestinian group Hamas claims its October 7 attack on Israel was in response to Israeli actions at the Al Aqsa Mosque, illegal settler violence in the occupied West Bank, and to bring attention back to the Palestinian issue. Hamas fighters infiltrated 22 locations outside Gaza, including areas up to 24 kilometers from the Gaza border, and captured around 240 hostages, including Israeli military personnel and civilians, many of whom were later exchanged for Palestinians held in Israeli prisons.
Since then, Israel has conducted extensive bombings in Gaza by air, land, and sea, resulting in over 35,000 Palestinian deaths, mostly among children and women, and injuries to nearly 80,000 people. The bombardments have displaced the majority of Gaza’s 2.4 million residents. Israel faces genocide accusations at the International Court of Justice, which has mandated that Israel ensure its forces do not commit genocidal acts and provide humanitarian aid to civilians in Gaza.
