By Alyssa McMurtry
OVIEDO, Spain (AA) - Activists and politicians in Spain claimed that a ship that may be carrying arms bound for Israel docked in the Spanish port of Cartegena on Thursday, a claim the government denied.
Irene Montero of the far-left Podemos party announced that her party filed a complaint in Spain’s National Court to block the ship from leaving.
She added that the court has opened preliminary proceedings to ensure that the military material on the ship is not going to be “used in a genocide.”
The ship in question is called Borkum and is sailing under the Antigua & Barbuda flag.
Yet Spain’s Transport Minister Oscar Puente told media on Thursday that it was “deeply irresponsible” to make the unverified claim that the ship’s final destination is Israel.
“If we had some evidence, not just suspicions... that this shipment was going to end up in Israel, don’t doubt for a second that the Spanish government would block it. But that’s not the case,” he said, insisting that it is going to the Czech Republic and that its documents have been verified.
But even members of Spain’s junior coalition party Sumar are questioning the government’s confidence.
“Whoever is buying or selling arms for a genocide probably doesn’t want to announce it,” Sumar spokesperson Inigo Errejon told journalists. “What we want is for the ship to be blocked, for its cargo to be inspected and to check its documentation.”
Meanwhile, Ione Belarra of Podemos denounced on X that “the Czech Republic is one of the largest vendors of arms to Israel.”
“It’s clear that this is an intermediate stop, and that the cargo will reach Israel for the genocide of the Palestinian people,” she added.
UN Special Rapporteur on Palestine, Francesca Albanese, even joined the debate, writing that the ship poses a challenge to “Spain’s stance on human rights,” but adding that she “trusts in the peoples of Spain” to “ make sure that an effective arms embargo on Israel is progressively and fully enforced.”
Spain has banned arms sales to Israel shortly after Oct. 7.
This shipment came under suspicion on Wednesday when Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions Against Israel (BDS Murcia) released documents suggesting the Borkum may be carrying arms bound for Israel.
BDS Murcia and the Solidarity Network Against the Occupation of Palestine (RESCOP) called for a protest in the Spanish port of Cartagena for Thursday evening.