On Tuesday, Ana Miranda, a Spanish member of the European Parliament (MEP), who claimed to be visiting the occupied Palestinian territories on business, was refused entry to Israel.
Her involvement in the 2015 protest flotilla to Gaza, for which she was banned from Israel and informed that she would not be permitted to reenter, was the cause of her expulsion.
A party of MEPs led by Miranda arrived at Ben Gurion International Airport; their visit had been planned and approved beforehand.
All the MEPs were allowed admission except her after their late Monday flight.
She was detained at the airport for around six hours until Foreign Minister Eli Cohen instructed authorities to deny her entry.
Following this incident, the European Union voiced its disappointment and stressed that preserving friendly relations between the EU and Israel requires treating each MEP with respect.
Roberta Micella, the president of the European Parliament, promised to get in touch with the Israeli government and look into the situation further.
Miranda referred to the occurrence as a “diplomatic insult” and an act of “disrespect towards the European Parliament” in a video she posted before being deported.
José Manuel Albares Bueno, the foreign minister of Spain, expressed displeasure at the deportation and demanded an explanation from the Israeli government.
Eli Cohen, the foreign minister of Israel responded by issuing the following statement: “Israel is grateful for the tight and significant ties with European countries and the EU. We “Israel is thankful for the close and important relations with European nations and with the EU. The dialogue with the European countries, which constitute the main trading partner of the State of Israel, is broad, and still, we do not see eye to eye on every topic.
“Nonetheless, the State of Israel will not allow parties who try to harm it to cooperate with terror organizations or try to illegally enter the country. I instructed not to permit entry to MEPs who have expressed support for terrorist organisations or MEPs that have tried in the past to illegally enter Israel.”
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