Israel’s UN envoy sparks Spain spat with accusation of ‘colonial enclaves’ in Africa

Diplomatic tensions flared between Spain and Israel on Friday after Israeli Ambassador to the United Nations Danny Danon slammed the Spanish government for its handling of the country’s migrant crisis, prompting backlash in Madrid and a public rebuke from Israel’s top diplomat in Spain.“Spain, which never misses an opportunity to lecture Israel, has declared a state of emergency in Ceuta following the crisis over its immigration policy,” Danon wrote on X. “Maybe before it continues lecturing us, it’s time it explained to the world why it still maintains colonial enclaves in Africa.”His remarks came after tens of thousands of migrants illegally crossed the border from Morocco into Ceuta, a Spanish enclave in North Africa.Spain’s Interior Ministry said on Friday that around 50,000 people had entered Ceuta since Thursday morning, and estimated that nearly all of them, 48,000, had already turned and gone back. The Spanish government’s representative in Ceuta said…
Diplomatic tensions arose between Spain and Israel after Israel's UN Ambassador Danny Danon criticized Spain's handling of a migrant crisis in Ceuta, a Spanish enclave in North Africa. Danon stated, "Maybe before it continues lecturing us, it’s time it explained to the world why it still maintains colonial enclaves in Africa." This followed tens of thousands of migrants crossing from Morocco into Ceuta. Spanish officials and commentators, including Transportation Minister Óscar Puente Santiago, interpreted Danon's remarks and the migrant influx as supporting a conspiracy theory that Israel and the US orchestrated the incursion as retaliation for Spain's shift on Western Sahara. Israel's Ambassador to Spain, Dana Erlich, publicly disavowed Danon's comments, stating they "does not represent the position of the State of Israel." This incident further strained already high tensions between Madrid and Jerusalem, exacerbated by Spain's recent recognition of a Palestinian state.
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