Spain has decided to withdraw its ambassador to Tel Aviv in the latest sign of rift with Israel over its war on Iran, the Official State Gazette said on Wednesday.

This comes as Spain's Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez has been Europe's most vocal opponent of Israel's genocide in Gaza and its war on Iran, which it is waging alongside the U.S.
The Spanish embassy in Tel Aviv will be led by a charge d'affaires, a source at the foreign ministry told Middle East Eye.

“The foreign ministry confirms the withdrawal of the ambassador to Tel Aviv, who was called back for consultations ‘indefinitely’, leaving the Spanish embassy in Tel Aviv under the leadership of a charge d'affaires, at the same level as the Israeli embassy in Madrid," the source told MEE.

The move is the latest sign of a deepening diplomatic rift between Madrid and Israel that has intensified since Israel waged its genocide on Gaza in October 2023.

Spain has been one of the few European governments to consistently condemn Israel’s conduct in the war and label it a genocide, and in 2025 banned ships and aircraft carrying weapons to Israel from using Spanish ports or airspace.

Spain also recognized a Palestinian state in 2024, prompting Israel to recall its ambassador from Madrid. Relations deteriorated further after Spain’s ambassador to Israel was initially summoned home for consultations in September 2025 amid disputes over Madrid’s restrictions on arms shipments linked to the genocide. 

In January, the prime minister also refused to join President Donald Trump's Board of Peace plan for running Gaza, denouncing it as a violation of international law, and rejecting its exclusion of the Palestinian Authority. 

Tensions have escalated again in recent weeks over the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran as Sanchez has strongly criticized the military campaign as illegal, and has refused to allow the U.S. to use jointly operated military bases in southern Spain for operations linked to strikes on Iran.

The decision triggered a public clash with Trump, who accused Spain of being "unfriendly" and threatened to cut off trade with the country after Madrid denied Washington access to the bases.

In a televised address earlier this month, Sanchez defended Spain’s position, summarizing it in three words: “No to war.”

"One illegality cannot be met with another, because that is how humanity's great disasters begin," he said in his 4 March speech in response to Trump.

"All too often, great wars erupt due to a chain of events that spiral out of control, caused by miscalculations, technical failures, or unforeseen circumstances.

"Therefore, we must learn from history and cannot play Russian roulette with the destiny of millions of people."

"Spain stands with the founding principles of the European Union. It stands with the Charter of the United Nations. It stands with international law and therefore with peace and peaceful coexistence between countries," said Sanchez.