Spain on Wednesday summoned Israel’s charge d’affaires to protest the “unjustified detention” of a Spanish UN peacekeeper by the Israeli army in Lebanon, according to Spanish broadcaster Cadena Ser.
Sources at the Foreign Ministry told Cadena Ser that the envoy was called in to formally convey Madrid’s protest over the incident involving a member of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL).
The development follows an incident late Tuesday in which Israeli forces briefly detained a peacekeeper after stopping a UNIFIL logistics convoy in southern Lebanon.
Spain’s Defense Minister Margarita Robles on Wednesday said the Spanish soldier, who was part of a contingent delivering supplies, was held for about an hour before being released following high-level intervention, according to local media reports.
“The fact that there was an absolutely illegal detention of a United Nations member, in this case a Spanish peacekeeper, is unacceptable,” said Robles, who also met with the Lebanese ambassador in Madrid on Wednesday.
UNIFIL confirmed the incident on Tuesday, saying a peacekeeper was detained after a logistics convoy was blocked by Israeli forces but was released shortly after direct contacts with mission leadership.
“Any detention of a United Nations peacekeeper is a blatant violation of international law,” the mission said on US social media platform X, calling for full respect for the freedom of movement of its personnel.
The incident comes amid ongoing Israeli military operations in southern Lebanon, where strikes continue despite a ceasefire linked to the Iran conflict.
Israel’s highest diplomatic representation in Spain has been the charge d’affaires since 2024, when it withdrew its ambassador after Madrid recognized Palestinian statehood.
Spain also summoned the envoy last week to protest Israeli police preventing a senior Catholic cleric from celebrating Palm Sunday Mass at Jerusalem’s Church of the Holy Sepulchre.
