Israel expelled Spain from the United States’ Civil-Military Coordination Center (CMCC) in Kiryat Gat, according to a Foreign Ministry statement on Friday.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that this came “after Spain has chosen repeatedly to stand against Israel.”
The CMCC helps implement US President Donald Trump’s peace plan in Gaza.
“Spain has defamed our heroes, the soldiers of the IDF, the soldiers of the most moral army in the world,” Netanyahu said, adding that he is “not willing to tolerate this hypocrisy and hostility. I do not intend to allow any country to wage a diplomatic war against us without paying an immediate price.”
Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar noted that the move, which was carried out in coordination with the United States, stemmed from the Spanish government’s “obsessive anti-Israel bias.”
“Spain’s obsessive anti-Israel bias under [Prime Minister Pedro] Sánchez’s leadership is so severe that it has lost all capacity to play a constructive role in implementing [Trump’s] peace plan and the center operating under the framework of this plan,” Sa’ar said.
The CMCC, which is part of US Central Command (CENTCOM), was created in October 2025 to oversee and facilitate the flow of humanitarian, logistical, and security assistance from the international community into the Gaza Strip under Trump’s peace plan.
Sanchez's history of anti-Israel comments
Spain has recently cemented its role as an outspoken critic of the US and Israeli military campaigns despite US threats to punish uncooperative NATO allies.
This past week, Sánchez strongly condemned Israeli strikes on Lebanon as well as the broader war on Iran, reiterating his call for the European Union to scuttle its association agreement with Israel, urging an end to “impunity for [Israel’s] criminal actions.”
In a Wednesday post on X/Twitter, Sánchez said Netanyahu’s “contempt for life and international law is intolerable.”
He has also closed Spanish airspace to any aircraft involved in a confrontation he has described as reckless and illegal.
He has also closed Spanish airspace to any aircraft involved in a confrontation he has described as reckless and illegal.
Danya Saperstein and Reuters contributed to this report.