Spain permanently withdraws ambassador as rift with Israel deepens

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March 11, 2026 7:45 AM EDT

A man holds a sign reading "NO WAR ON IRAN" on the day Israel and the U.S. conducted strikes in Iran, in downtown Madrid, Spain, February 28, 2026. REUTERS/Violeta Santos Moura

MADRID, March 11 (Reuters) - ‌Spain permanently ​withdrew ​its ambassador to Israel on Tuesday as a diplomatic standoff worsened between the ‌two countries over Spain's opposition to the U.S.-Israeli ⁠attacks on Iran.

The ambassador was summoned back to Spain ‌last September amid a ‌diplomatic row over Spanish measures banning aircraft and ships carrying weapons to Israel from its ports ​or airspace due to Israel's military offensive in Gaza, which Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar ⁠denounced as antisemitic.

On Tuesday, Spain published an announcement in its official ​gazette that the ambassador's position had been terminated. Spain's Foreign Ministry said its embassy ​in Tel Aviv will be ‌led by a charge d'affaires for the foreseeable future.

The move marks the ⁠latest escalation in diplomatic relations between the two countries, which have been heavily strained since Israel launched its ⁠assault on the Gaza Strip in October of 2023.

Israel's embassy ​in Spain is also run by a charge d'affaires after the country summoned its ambassador last May in protest ‌at Spain's decision to recognise a Palestinian state.

Tensions have heightened since the ‌U.S.-Israeli strikes on Iran, with Sa'ar accusing Spain ⁠in early March of "standing ‌with tyrants" for ​opposing the war.

(Reporting by Emma Pinedo and Victoria Waldersee; editing by Charlie Devereux, William ‌Maclean)


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