Jewish cemetery in Spain vandalised in ‘despicable antisemitic act of desecration’

Describing the vandalism as “a grave offence against the memory of the deceased and an affront to the values of coexistence, respect and religious freedom”, they called on the authorities to “take the utmost firmness against antisemitism in all its forms, identify the perpetrators of these acts, and ensure they are prosecuted and tried according to the law.”

Jaume Collboni, the Mayor of Barcelona, said in a statement that authorities were working to identify those responsible: “Hate has no place in a pluralistic and respectful Barcelona,” he said.

Israel’s foreign ministry appeared to tie the incident to what it described as Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez’s “anti-Israel campaign”.

“We condemn the vandalism of the Jewish cemetery in Barcelona. This despicable act is a result of the anti-Israel campaign by the Sánchez government. We stand with Spain’s Jewish community. Antisemitism must never be normalised and must be firmly rejected in all societies,” a post published by the Israeli foreign ministry’s X account reads.

Spain, along with Ireland, Slovenia and Belgium, has accused Israel at the International Court of Justice of committing genocide in the Gaza Strip – an allegation Israel has repeatedly denied.

Some critics of the Sánchez government have accused it of using the Gaza war to distract from corruption scandals, while emboldening antisemites in the country.