The Spanish government has decided to allow the United States’ extradition request for wealthy activist James “Fergie” Chambers to proceed through the country’s judicial system.
Chambers, a US citizen and donor to left-wing and humanitarian causes, is currently being held in a Madrid prison. The case is reportedly the first known instance of the US seeking the extradition of a citizen over alleged support for Hamas, with the allegations linked to money Chambers donated to Palestinian causes, including the Sameer Project in Gaza.
Chambers’ lawyers, several Spanish parliamentarians and celebrity supporters have opposed the extradition request, arguing that it amounts to political persecution and should therefore be considered illegitimate under Spanish law.
Spain’s 22-member Council of Ministers had the option of rejecting the US request outright at its meeting on Tuesday. Instead, it referred the matter to the Spanish justice system, beginning a judicial process that could take several months.
Chambers has also applied for asylum in Spain while in prison. According to his lawyer, Aitor Martínez, who is part of his legal team, Spanish law prevents the country from extraditing him while his asylum application remains unresolved.
Martínez also said a third application seeking Chambers’ release on bail is awaiting a judge’s decision. Previous requests for his release have been rejected since Spanish police arrested him in Ibiza on July 10.
Spain’s Minister of Inclusion, Social Security and Migration, Elma Saiz, spent less than a minute explaining Tuesday’s decision to journalists, describing it as “purely procedural”.
Although details of the Council of Ministers’ discussions are not made public, sources close to the meeting told the Guardian that the decision faced opposition from members of the Sumar coalition, which governs alongside Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez’s Socialist Party.
“There was debate, and five ministers from Sumar – including the vice-president – pushed back in the meeting,” the sources said.
The Spanish government has repeatedly expressed support for Palestinians, a position that has put Sánchez at odds with the administration of US President Donald Trump.
Baltasar Garzón, the international human rights lawyer leading Chambers’ defence, criticised the government’s decision and said it could have wider implications.
The decision, he said, “sets a dangerous precedent regarding the defense of the Palestinian cause”.
“Spain cannot defend international law, the rights of the Palestinian people and the protection of those who provide humanitarian aid while at the same time allowing a request to proceed with an extradition that shows clear signs of political persecution by the US government, as it is directed against an individual because of his political activity and solidarity with Palestine.”
Podemos secretary-general Ione Belarra also criticised the decision, accusing the government of allowing the extradition case to advance.
She said the government “has chosen to keep [Chambers] imprisoned by giving the green light for Trump’s political persecution to proceed to the courts”.
Belarra appeared in Parliament on Tuesday wearing a T-shirt bearing the words “Free Fergie”.
She also raised concerns about Spain’s upcoming general election, which must be held by August, arguing that Chambers’ case could still be before the courts when a different government takes office.
According to Belarra, many members of Congress “are deeply concerned that by the time Fergie Chambers’ case has gone through the judicial process … Spain could have a more conservative, pro-Israel government”.
She warned that Chambers’ extradition “risks opening the floodgates to Trump’s repression reaching into Spain and the rest of Europe and targeting other progressives”.
US Allegations Centre On $7.5m Transfer
The US case against Chambers centres on allegations that he laundered $7.5m transferred several years ago from a US bank account to Tunisia, where he was living at the time, and subsequently used the money to support Hamas.
However, Chambers’ partner, activist and actor Stella Schnabel, told the Guardian that the money was used to support Club Africain, a Tunisian football club.
According to Schnabel, the funds helped the club settle debts and unpaid salaries, rebuild a training centre and construct football fields for young people.
Chambers’ lawyers have also challenged the US government’s allegation of “international money laundering”, arguing that his personal wealth was legally obtained.
Chambers inherited his fortune from one of the wealthiest families in the US. In mid-2023, he reached a settlement with his family, the owners of Atlanta-based Cox Communications, under which he sold stock worth approximately $250m.
Following the settlement, members of his family cut ties with him, while Chambers went on to donate money to about 100 projects across 20 countries.
His political views and donations have attracted significant attention in US media. In late 2023, he appeared on a New Hampshire television station to discuss a direct action against Israeli defence contractor Elbit Systems by a group whose legal fees he had funded. The group was later known as Palestine Action and has since been proscribed as a “terrorist organization” in the UK.
Chambers’ public statements about Israel and Gaza have also generated controversy. Following the October 7, 2023 Hamas attacks on Israel, he wrote on X about Israel’s response:
“Stop calling it ‘collective punishment’/ There’s nothing to be ‘punished’ for/ No faction of the Palestinian resistance, Hamas or other, has done anything wrong/ It’s simply genocide/ Like it has been.”
He has also strongly criticised the US, telling a reporter in 2024: “I think the most important thing for the prosperity of humanity is the destruction of the US.”
Chambers’ partner, Schnabel, said the situation had left her devastated. The couple have a young son, while she is more than three months pregnant.
“I am heartbroken,” Schnabel told the Guardian.
“Fergie could spend the first year of our baby’s life unable to hold them, seeing them only through a pane of glass – even though he has not been convicted of any crime,” she said.
