Spain’s left-wing Podemos party is calling for Israel to be barred from the Paris Olympics and is calling on other countries to boycott the competition if that doesn’t happen, party spokeswoman Maria Teresa Perez said at a news conference on Monday.
“We oppose Israel’s participation (in the Olympic Games). It is the international community that should veto a genocidal state like Israel, and if this does not happen, then we understand that the most correct position is not to participate in this ‘image laundering’ “, the representative of the political force emphasized.⠀
In addition, she was critical of Israel’s participation in the Eurovision 2024 song contest.⠀
“While there was music in Malmö, bombs were falling on Gaza,” the party speaker said.⠀
The politician called the position of the Israeli delegation and the organizers of the event, who did not allow other participants in the competition to make statements in support of peace, “absolutely intimidating.”⠀
The Summer Olympic Games in Paris will take place from July 26 to August 11.
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On October 7, 2023, Israel was subjected to an unprecedented rocket attack from the Gaza Strip. After this, fighters from the Palestinian Hamas movement entered the border areas, opened fire on military and civilians, and took more than 200 hostages. According to authorities, about 1.2 thousand people died.
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The Israel Defense Forces launched Operation Iron Swords in the Gaza Strip, which included attacks on civilian targets. Israel announced a complete blockade of the enclave: supplies of water, electricity, fuel, food and medicine were stopped. According to the Gaza Ministry of Health, more than 35 thousand people were killed and over 78 thousand were injured.
