Not so long ago, if one were to say that a top Spanish government official would someday declare that “from the river to the sea, Palestine would be free,” the suggestion itself would have seemed ludicrous. But this is precisely how Yolanda Diaz, Spain’s deputy prime minister, concluded a statement on May 23, a few days before Spain officially recognized Palestine as a state.

The recognition of Palestine by Spain, along with Norway and Ireland, is important. Western Europe is finally catching up with the rest of the world regarding the significance of a strong international position in support of the Palestinian people and in rejection of Israel’s genocidal practices in the Occupied Territories.

But equally important is the changing political discourse regarding both Palestine and Israel in Europe and all over the world.

Almost immediately after the start of the ongoing Israeli war on Gaza, some European countries imposed restrictions on pro-Palestinian protests, with some even banning the Palestinian flag, which was perceived, through some twisted logic, as an antisemitic symbol.

With time, however, Western governments’ unprecedented solidarity with Israel became an outright political, legal and moral liability. Thus, a slow shift began, leading to a near-complete transformation in the position of some governments and a partial though clear shift in the political discourse among others.

The early........

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