Spanish steel company ends sales to Israel

OVIEDO, Spain

Spanish steelmaker Sidenor announced Tuesday that it will halt all trade with Israel, according to local media reports.

Last month, Irish publication The Ditch reported that the company had shipped 1,207 tons of steel bars to Israeli weapons manufacturer IMI Systems over a 10-month period starting last August.

The Basque-based company, one of Europe’s largest specialized steelmakers, will now end all sales to Israel, according to Spanish broadcaster Cadena Ser.

Sidenor said the economic impact of the decision is minor, with Israel accounting for less than 0.5% of its total sales.

It added that the move aligns with the Spanish government’s call to cease trade with Israel.

“Sidenor gave in to social pressure,” Spain’s Minister of Consumer Affairs Pablo Bustinduy said on the social media platform Bluesky.

He added that he was still waiting for the head of Spain’s business confederation to respond to the government’s request to “sever all ties between Spanish companies and the occupation, apartheid and genocide of the Palestinian people.”

Spain’s government has said it suspended all arms trade with Israel since its onslaught in Gaza began, although reports have revealed that some contracts remain active.

Spain has been one of the most outspoken critics in Europe of the Israeli offensive, which has killed more than 56,600 people and left hundreds of thousands on the brink of starvation.

Last year, Spain moved to recognize Palestinian statehood.

Last week, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez criticized the EU for failing to suspend its trade agreement with Israel, despite “flagrant violations” of its article on human rights.