Spain: Moroccan-origin lawmaker threatened with expulsion in Parliament

During a debate dedicated to combating hate speech in sports, tensions erupted sharply in the chamber. Lawmaker Alberto Tarradas (Vox - Far-right) first defended his support for Islamophobic chants shouted during a recent match between Spain and Egypt. He then personally targeted Najat Driouech, an elected representative of the Republican Left (ERC) born in Morocco.

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As reported by La Sexta, the deputy said ironically: "If she decides not to jump, that’s fine [...]. We won’t expel her for that, at least not for now," before asserting he wanted a "Christian Spain and never a Muslim one."

Facing this violent attack, the Moroccan-origin representative responded with dignity, reminding the assembly that it is a place to "confront ideas and policies, not to personalize attacks against a colleague." Under fire from criticism, Alberto Tarradas eventually backed down and publicly apologized.

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This incident nonetheless sparked a wave of condemnations from the top of the Catalan executive. The president of the Generalitat, Salvador Illa, denounced an "indecent example of Vox’s hate speech," while ERC leader Oriol Junqueras warned that "threats from racist far-right groups will neither silence nor make us retreat."