Oh my, this is no bueno…
Iberia investigates “Free Palestine” kosher meals
Iberia has opened an investigation into something that happened on Monday, August 4, 2025, on flight IB102 from Buenos Aires (EZE) to Madrid (MAD). Specifically, several Jewish passengers on the flight ordered kosher meals, and were then presented meal trays that either had “Free Palestine” or “FP” written on them with a marker.
As one of the passengers explains:
“I reported the incident to the head flight attendant, who took down the complaint, took photos, etc. They tried to apologize in every possible way. Apparently, it wasn’t any of the crew members, so if it came from outside, I’d imagine that Iberia will conduct an internal investigation of its suppliers and procedures. That’s precisely why I reported it, so that it doesn’t get forgotten.”
DAIA, which is the main representative body of the Jewish community in Argentina, is calling this a “serious act of antisemitism,” and has contacted the airline to demand an explanation for what happened.
In a statement, the oneworld airline has confirmed that “the Iberia crew documented the incident and took action to assist those affected,” and that “the captain personally approached them to apologise on behalf of the airline.” Iberia also states that it “categorically rejects any form of discrimination, incitement to hatred, or behaviour that undermines the dignity of individuals.”
Of course Iberia is part of International Airlines Group (IAG), and recently, IAG carrier Vueling was in the news, after dozens of Jewish children were kicked off a flight. However, there are two sides to the story — the students claimed they were kicked off for antisemitism, while the crew claimed the students weren’t following crew instructions, and were playing with safety equipment.
I’m curious if Iberia can determine who is behind this
Regardless of how you feel about the conflict between Israel and Palestine, writing a “Free Palestine” message on kosher meals is inappropriate, and there should be accountability here.
Based on the passenger’s own report, it sounds like the crew took the situation seriously and was apologetic, so that suggests that someone in the catering facility, or responsible for transporting the meals to the plane, may have been involved.
Here’s the part that makes this so strange — kosher meals are double wrapped in the special catering facility, and it looks like this was written on the container with the food, which would’ve been fully wrapped prior to being transported to the plane, and being served to passengers. That suggests that someone in the catering facility with access to the kosher kitchen may have been involved.
Obviously Spain has been in the news on the topic of aviation and antisemitism, given the recent Vueling situation. However, this flight originated in Argentina, and Iberia contracts out its catering. So I imagine this could have just as easily happened on any other flight or airline. Hopefully an investigation can determine what happened here, because this isn’t cool.
Bottom line
Some passengers on a long haul Iberia flight were shocked to find that their kosher meals had the message “Free Palestine” written on them. It sounds like the crew did a good job handling this, in terms of apologizing and filing a report. This situation is likely related to the catering facility…
What do you make of this Iberia kosher meal situation?
