The Foreign Office has protested “at a high level” to the Spanish government after two men fishing off the coast of Gibraltar claimed to have had shots fired in their direction from a Spanish vessel.
Gibraltar’s chief minister, Fabian Picardo, said the crew of a Spanish customs boat – the Servicio de Vigilancia Aduanera (SVA) – fired four pistol shots at a pleasure cruise when it was “well inside” British Gibraltar territorial waters on Saturday.
He called the incursion illegal and said it was an unacceptable threat. Picardo said (pdf): “This is the third incident involving the SVA in as many weeks. This illegal incursion by the SVA represents an extremely serious escalation of the repeated Spanish violations of British-Gibraltar sovereignty.”
The territory’s government said the Spanish vessel Aguila IV had ordered the fishing cruise to cut its engines, which was refused. The customs boat circled the fishing vessel and crew members attempted to board it, according to reports.
A government spokesman said: “During this time, the shots were fired by the [Spanish] crew into the sea near the boat and objects that they believe to have been bricks were allegedly thrown at the local men.”
The two men called police who arrived and escorted their boat back to the Gibraltar government marine station at Gun Wharf.
The spokesman added: “There is no suspicion that they were doing anything illegal. They had all the necessary fishing permits.”
From Tuesday, Picardo said the government of Gibraltar would challenge any future incursions by Spanish customs vessels.
He said: “There is no ‘law enforcement’ excuse this time. Investigations confirm that shots were fired by the SVA at the innocent Gibraltarian pleasure boat. The Spanish authorities have, therefore, put the lives of innocent Gibraltarian civilians at risk. These actions are criminal offences in Gibraltar.”
The Foreign Office said it was still establishing the facts surrounding the incident along with Gibraltar’s government and the Royal Gibraltar police.
An FCO spokeswoman said: “We have protested this incursion to the Spanish government at a high level and have also raised our extreme concern over the reported interaction between the Spanish vessel and a Gibraltarian pleasure craft during the incursion.
“We take seriously any reports of attempts by Spanish law enforcement agencies to interfere with vessels in British Gibraltar territorial waters and threaten or intimidate their crews.”
Earlier this month, Picardo said he was astonished and appalled after Spanish police chasing criminals made several incursions into British waters.
The peninsula of Gibraltar has been controlled by Britain since 1713, but Spain disputes UK sovereignty over the territory.
