Spain’s health minister on Thursday criticised what she described as US ‘interference’ after an American official called for an investigation into the euthanasia of a paraplegic woman whose prolonged legal fight with her father drew widespread attention.
Noelia Castillo, 25, underwent euthanasia last week in Spain, one of the few countries where the practice is legal, following the introduction of a 2021 law that sets out strict conditions.
She had first applied for assisted dying in 2024 after becoming paraplegic in 2022, when she threw herself from the fifth floor of a building in a suicide attempt.
Her father challenged the request in court, arguing that she did not fulfil the legal criteria, including being of sound mind and experiencing intolerable physical or psychological suffering. His appeal halted the procedure and triggered a lengthy legal dispute — the first of its kind in Spain — which ultimately reached Europe’s top human rights court. The court dismissed his claim. ALSO READ: Spain confronts euthanasia law fallout after landmark case divides nation.
On Wednesday, US official Riley Barnes, the assistant secretary of state for human rights, said it was ‘imperative’ Noelia’s case was investigated, adding that she ‘was failed in life’.
Spanish Health Minister Mónica García (main image) responded a day later after the US embassy in Madrid reiterated Barnes’s remarks, writing on social media: ‘We will not allow disinformation to feed interference.’
‘Spain is a serious and sovereign country, with one of the world’s best health systems, legislation that guarantees rights, professional clinical committees and the backing of the European Court of Human Rights,’ the health minister wrote (see below).
Addressing reports that the United States might open an investigation, García had already posted on Wednesday urging President Donald Trump to ‘stop feeding the international extremist agenda by poking his nose everywhere’ (also see below).
Spanish state broadcaster RTVE highlighted that there had been a surge of disinformation on social media surrounding the case, including false claims questioning Noelia’s eligibility, accusations that the Spanish state had ‘abandoned’ her, and suggestions linking the euthanasia procedure to organ donation.
The episode marks the latest in a series of tensions between Washington and Spain’s left-leaning coalition government since Trump returned to power, with previous disagreements centred on NATO defence spending and the US–Israeli war against Iran. ALSO READ: Spain blocks its airspace to US military flights linked to the war in Iran.
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En Estados Unidos mueren cada año miles de personas sin seguro médico, mientras Trump apoya y ejecuta vulneraciones de derechos humanos entre Gaza e Irán.
— Mónica García (@Monica_Garcia_G) April 1, 2026
Que deje de alimentar la agenda ultra internacional metiendo sus narices en cualquier sitio.
España es un país serio, con… pic.twitter.com/sU0cnm7RrT
España es un país serio y soberano, con uno de los mejores sistemas sanitarios del mundo, una legislación garantista, unos comités clínicos profesionales y el aval del Tribunal Europeo de Derechos Humanos. No vamos a permitir que la desinformación alimente injerencias. https://t.co/owaSeFEk3n
— Mónica García (@Monica_Garcia_G) April 2, 2026
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