this post was submitted on 29 Sep 2025
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34
Spain's PM Sanchez is using Gaza to save his skin (www.telegraph.co.uk)
submitted 21 hours ago by Hotznplotzn@lemmy.sdf.org to c/europe@feddit.org
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[...]

Spain became one of the first European countries to approve a full arms embargo on Israel as Mr Sanchez again grasped a rare leadership role for Madrid in world affairs.

But he is also using Israel’s war in Gaza to save his political skin in a country that is, with Ireland, the most pro-Palestinian in Europe.

Experts predict that he will try to [...] draw a line under the corruption scandal engulfing his Socialist party (PSOE).

Months of accusations of cronyism and fraud have threatened his fragile coalition government and have touched some of the 53-year-old’s closest allies – not to mention his wife and brother.

This week, a court ruled that his brother, David, will stand trial after taking a well-paid government job that was allegedly created for him by party officials.

Separately, a judge indicated that Begona Gomez, the prime minister’s wife, would face a court hearing over accusations she embezzled state funds to pay for a personal assistant. [Begona Gomez refused to show Saturday at a hearing meant to formally notify her she should face trial, according to reports citing a legal source at the appointment.]

[...]

Spain is starkly polarised, and locked in a culture war between the Right and Left. At the last election in 2023, fragmented Left-wing parties obtained a combined vote share of 47.9 per cent. Right-wing parties achieved 47.2 per cent, with the centre-Right Partido Popular (PP) winning the most votes but falling short of a majority.

[...]

In addition, Spain cane under fire for contracting Huawei to store judicial wiretaps by its EU partners. The Spanish Ministry of the Interior has awarded €12.3 million ($14.3 million) contracts to manage and store judicially authorized wiretaps used by law enforcement and intelligence agencies, raising concerns about potential Chinese government access due to the company’s ties to Beijing.

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[–] lowleekun@ani.social 30 points 20 hours ago (1 children)

At this moment i do not give too much of a fuck why people fight for Gaza.

Whats the other countries reason to suck up to murderers? Whats a good reason to watch a genocide unfolding?

I can only say to Merz und his friends: Go eat a bag of shit you corrupted, heartless bastards.

[–] reallykindasorta@slrpnk.net 3 points 10 hours ago

Full agree

[–] IAmNorRealTakeYourMeds@lemmy.world 5 points 15 hours ago

Politician does something popular that the public wants and makes fucking sense

liberal media: here what politicians following the will is the people it's bad.

[–] bigFab@lemmy.world 5 points 15 hours ago

What this article misses is the civilian anti-genocide protests the spanish gvt. faces of the size of 100.000 in a single protest and stopping the big cycling tour.

[–] theacharnian@lemmy.ca 4 points 15 hours ago (1 children)

This is a hit piece.

[–] AllNewTypeFace@leminal.space 2 points 12 hours ago

Given that it’s from the Torygraph, there’s nothing else it could have been

[–] iturnedintoanewt@lemmy.world 13 points 20 hours ago

Are we believing the telegraph now?

[–] HowRu68@lemmy.world 10 points 20 hours ago* (last edited 20 hours ago) (1 children)

He is a very political animal going with the issues as long as his polls go up.

[–] randomname@scribe.disroot.org 5 points 20 hours ago (1 children)

The question is how long his polls will go up given the corruption probes surrounding Sanchez and former cabinet members and senior officials of his own party, as well as his wife and his brother were implicated in alleged kickbacks, rigged tenders, and influence peddling. Then he contracted China's Huawei with the country's judicial wiretap system.

And the next question is what alternatives Spain would have. I don't know much about Spanish politics. Are there any reasonable alternatives in the country or just the right-wing opposition?

[–] bufalo1973@piefed.social 4 points 18 hours ago (1 children)

The case against Begoña is made up and the judge is doing a prospective case, something that is expressly forbidden in Spain.

[–] Hotznplotzn@lemmy.sdf.org 3 points 17 hours ago (2 children)

The case against Begoña is made up and the judge is doing a prospective case, something that is expressly forbidden in Spain.

I don't know what makes you think the case is being made up. But even if so, are the cases against officials of his own party and government also made up? And the case against his brother?

Mr. Sanchez is (rightfully) criticizing the 'genocide' in Israel, but only reluctantly support EU sanctions against Russia, and he contracted Chinese tech firm Huawei with Spain's wiretap system used by law enforcement. Do the genocides these regimes are responsible for not matter to Mr. Sanchez?

[–] fushuan@lemmy.blahaj.zone 3 points 13 hours ago (1 children)

The right parties in Spain have historically used the strategy of creating bogus cases against political opponents that end up dismissed all the time. The plan is to take as much time from their opponents as possible and to throw as much shit as possible to generate public distrust. It's literally what was done with Podemos. The case against his second in command is solid sadly, which in turn gives undeserved legitimacy to all the other shit the right is throwing.

Let me remind you that he has had to manage COVID, the valencian DANA and the general electrical shutdown while creating progressive policies and the economy being better than ever based on the current climate.

His opponent is the one that decided to do nothing during the Valencian DANA, while he was the actual "governor" of Valencia, and then criticised the central government via lies. So much so that right side mayor's of affected cities even pronounced publicly to say that the government was helping a lot.

At this point I don't really care if he's not clean, his party is so much better than all the right alternatives and even though locally I vote more left than PSOE, nationally I'm worried that another frankenstein government might not succeed.

[–] Hotznplotzn@lemmy.sdf.org 2 points 12 hours ago (1 children)

I don't defend his opponents, particularly those in the far-right, but I don't trust this person either. Sanchez is using Gaza heavily to portray himself as some sort of a defender of human rights and the rule of law, but has been cozying up to China and Russia for a very long time. This doesn't add up.

[–] fushuan@lemmy.blahaj.zone 2 points 11 hours ago

I don't think that's really true, as I see it, he isn't using it to portray himself as a defender, but as someone that represents the citizens that have pretty clearly voiced their opinion on the matter.

Regardless of past ties if he didn't listen to the heavy demonstrations and boycotts that the citizens are organising he'd be a terrible president. I'm not happy with Huawei's deal though.

If you don't mind, can you expand on the Russian ties you mentioned? I can't recall them from the top of my head.

[–] bufalo1973@piefed.social 1 points 17 hours ago

The other trials are more or less right (the brother's one... I don't know). But in the case against his wife even other judges say it's only the judge doing politics and not justice.

[–] verdi@feddit.org -2 points 20 hours ago

That's anti semitic. Oh, wait...