B’nai B’rith International President Seth J. Riklin and CEO Daniel S. Mariaschin have issued the following statement:

In 1998, Barcelona and Tel Aviv signed a friendship and cooperation agreement, which cemented the ties between these two wonderful Mediterranean cities.

We are shocked by the alleged intention of the current authorities of the City Council of Barcelona to end this agreement after 24 years of friendly relations.

If successful, this would be a decision that has no precedent in Europe and that is no doubt motivated by the most extreme anti-Israel bias. We are outraged that the City Council would make such a blatantly biased proposal.

Barcelona and Tel Aviv have always been beacons of democracy and liberty, and it would be shameful to end this agreement that has only benefited the people of both cities.