A top official in Spain is adopting a phrase about Palestinian territory many consider to be antisemitic.
On Thursday evening, Spanish Deputy Prime Minister Yolanda Díaz released a video and used the phrase “from the river to the sea.”
“We live at a time in world history where doing the bare minimum is both heroic and insufficient,” Díaz said.
She added, “That is why we cannot stop. Palestine will be free from the river to the sea.”
Watch the video below:
The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) notes, “‘From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free’ is an antisemitic slogan commonly featured in anti-Israel campaigns and chanted at demonstrations.”
“This rallying cry has long been used by anti-Israel voices, including supporters of terrorist organizations such as Hamas and the PFLP, which seek Israel’s destruction through violent means,” it continued. “It is fundamentally a call for a Palestinian state extending from the Jordan River to the Mediterranean Sea, territory that includes the State of Israel, which would mean the dismantling of the Jewish state. It is an antisemitic charge denying the Jewish right to self-determination, including through the removal of Jews from their ancestral homeland.”
According to the ADL, the slogan “has the effect of making members of the Jewish and pro-Israel community feel unsafe and ostracized.”
In a post on X, Israel’s embassy in Madrid responded to Díaz’s and said it “completely rejects Yolanda Díaz’s statements.”
It added the slogan “is a clear call for the destruction of Israel, fomenting hate and violence. Antisemitic statements are incompatible with a democratic society and it is unacceptable coming from a deputy prime minister. We hope Spain will live up to its promise” to combat antisemitism.
Díaz’s video comes as Spain, Norway, and Ireland moved to formally recognize a Palestinian state.
