Criminal complaint for "incitement to hatred" against Manuel Segade, director of the Reina Sofía Museum
DATE
LOCATION
TARGETED PERSON/INSTITUTION
Manuel Segade, director of the Reina Sofía National Art Centre Museum, and the museum
DOMAIN/FIELD
RESPONSIBLE FOR BAN
ACOM (Acción y Comunicación sobre Oriente Medio)
On 16 February 2026, the organisation ACOM announced legal action against the Reina Sofía Museum and, personally, against its director Manuel Segade, for "alleged incitement to antisemitic hatred" and "discrimination". It accuses him of authorising or tolerating artistic actions, gatherings and the display of symbols of solidarity with Palestine inside the museum, notably in front of Picasso's Guernica.
On 27 March 2026, ACOM filed a criminal complaint against Manuel Segade with the Madrid Provincial Prosecutor's Office (Fiscalía Provincial), asking it to open an investigation. The sources consulted do not indicate, at this stage, that the case has been referred to a court.
The complaint marks a shift in ACOM's legal actions: it no longer targets only an institution or artists, but personally the director of a national museum. The museum had already been criticised by the Israeli embassy in May 2024 for a series of activities in solidarity with Palestine.