On April 12, the Israeli Foreign Ministry summoned Spain's acting ambassador to Israel to lodge a serious protest over the burning of a puppet representing Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu.
Israel characterized the act as a "shocking anti-Jewish hate incident" and accused the Spanish government of "systematic incitement" on related issues.
The incident occurred in El Burgo, Spain. During the event, the Netanyahu puppet was set on fire, exploded, and was torn apart, prompting applause from the audience.
This seemingly accidental "puppet-burning" event was actually a concentrated outbreak of long-standing diplomatic tensions between Spain and Israel, intertwined with cultural traditions, differing stances on the Israel-Palestine conflict, and accumulated political grievances.
The event took place in a small town in Spain—a historical tradition for the town, but an intolerable political provocation for Israel.
In the town of El Burgo, Spain: "La Quema del Judas" (The Burning of Judas) is a decades-old Easter tradition involving the burning of a puppet symbolizing "evil," serving as a collective release for negative aspects of the past year. The puppet's appearance changes annually and has previously featured figures such as Trump. The mayor explicitly stated that this act is a symbolic political expression aimed at "saying no to war" or "ending genocide."
The Israeli government classified the incident as a direct and shocking act of anti-Jewish hatred. Israel argued that burning a lifelike effigy of its current leader and detonating it with 14 kilograms of explosives clearly exceeds the bounds of "symbolic protest."
To Israel, this was not merely an insult to its leader, but carried strong anti-Semitic undertones due to its Zionist symbolism.
This local event became the immediate trigger for an already existing diplomatic crisis between the two nations.
Israel summoned Spain’s acting ambassador, formally protested, and publicly accused the Spanish government of "systematic incitement" against Israel.
One day prior to the summoning, Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu had already ordered Spain’s representatives excluded from the Civil-Military Coordination Center (CMCC), responsible for Gaza affairs—this constituted a substantive penalty against the Spanish government.
3. Clearly stated that any country launching a "diplomatic war" against Israel would "immediately pay the price," escalating the conflict into a direct warning.
The Spanish Ministry of Foreign Affairs firmly rejected Israel's "malicious" accusations, emphasizing its commitment to combating anti-Semitism and all forms of hatred.
The root cause of this conflict runs far deeper than the puppet incident—it is an inevitable outcome of long-standing geopolitical and ideological opposition between the two countries.
This event marks the culmination of a series of political and diplomatic conflicts between Spain and Israel since the 2023 Gaza war. Israel seized upon a folk custom in a small town, elevating it to a high-profile issue, using it as a comprehensive reckoning and retaliation against Spain's long-standing pro-Palestinian stance.
Original source: toutiao.com/article/1862267617588224/
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