Madrid (AFP) - Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez called Monday for Israel to be barred from international sport over the Gaza war, as it emerged his government had also cancelled an $825 million military contract with the country.

Sanchez expressed “deep admiration” for thousands of protesters who forced the halt of the final stage of the Vuelta a Espana, one of the world’s biggest cycling races, in Spain on Sunday.

He said Israel should be penalised just as Russia was over its invasion of Ukraine – angering Israel, which had a team in the race, as well as Spanish conservatives.

“Our position is clear and categorical: as long as the barbarity continues, neither Russia nor Israel should participate in any international competition,” said Sanchez.

The Spanish leader has become one of Europe’s fiercest critics of Israel’s actions in Gaza, where the UN says Palestinians face starvation.

“Sports organizations should ask themselves whether it’s ethical for Israel to continue competing internationally,” said Sanchez.

“Why was Russia expelled after invading Ukraine, yet Israel faces no expulsion after invading Gaza?”

An official document seen Monday by AFP meanwhile showed the Spanish government had cancelled a contract worth nearly 700 million euros ($825 million) for Israeli-designed rocket launchers.

Last week Sanchez’s government announced measures aimed at stopping what it called “the genocide in Gaza”.

- ‘Shame for Spain’ -

Around 100,000 protestors gathered for Sunday’s final stage of the Vuelta which was cut short around 60 kilometres (40 miles) from the finish in central Madrid. There were some clashes with police.

Protesters denounced the participation of the Israel-Premier Tech team, privately owned by Israeli-Canadian property developer Sylvan Adams.

On Sunday protesters pushed over barriers and stood in the road where cyclists were due to pass. Police initially intervened at one point on the route, but ultimately allowed protesters to occupy the road peacefully.

Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar on Sunday accused Sanchez of “encouraging protesters to take to the streets”, calling his government a “shame for Spain”.

His comments mirrored criticism from Spain’s conservative opposition Popular Party (PP).

“The government has allowed and induced the non-completion of the Vuelta and, in this way, an international embarrassment televised worldwide,” PP leader Alberto Nunez Feijoo wrote on X.

Spain’s Federation of Jewish Communities (FCJE) condemned what it called the justification of violence in the protests and the spreading of hostility toward the country’s roughly 45,000 Jews.

- Tour de France doubts -

Javier Guillen, director of the Vuelta race, told a news conference on Monday the disruptions were “absolutely unacceptable. I regret the image it gave (to the world) and it should not be repeated.”

Cycling’s global governing body (UCI) on Monday said it “regretted” the Spanish government’s support for the demonstrations, which “could call into question Spain’s ability to host major international sporting events”.

The disruptions raised questions about possible changes to the 2026 Tour de France, scheduled to start in Barcelona.

“It’s obvious that since this Vuelta, international organisations will have to take decisions,” Guillen said.

“I hope it’s all sorted (by the Tour de France) and the conflict in Gaza has finished, not just for sport but for humanitarian reasons.”

- Arms contract cancelled -

The war was sparked by Hamas’s October 7, 2023 attack on Israel, which resulted in the deaths of 1,219 people, most of them civilians, according to an AFP tally of official figures.

Israel’s retaliatory campaign in Gaza has killed at least 64,905 people, also mostly civilians, according to figures from the health ministry that the United Nations considers reliable.

The Spanish measures announced last week over Gaza included a ban on military equipment sales or purchases with Israel.

The cancelled arms contract revealed Monday was awarded to a consortium of Spanish companies and involved the purchase of 12 SILAM rocket launcher systems derived from the PULS platform made by Israeli firm Elbit Systems, according to the International Institute for Strategic Studies’ Military Balance.

Spanish Culture Minister Ernest Urtasun said Monday that Spain should boycott next year’s Eurovision Song Contest if Israel takes part, joining other European nations threatening to pull out.