German Chancellor Friedrich Merz stated that Germany's position on the Israel-Hamas conflict remains unchanged despite suspending arms exports to Israel, intended for use in Gaza. Merz emphasized Germany's commitment to Israel's defense while highlighting the conflict's humanitarian implications. He expressed his responsibility for the arms export halt, facing criticism from conservative party members who argue it jeopardizes security cooperation with Israel. The decision follows Israel's controversial plan to take over Gaza City, met with international condemnation, including from UN chief Antonio Guterres and several countries that fear exacerbating the humanitarian crisis.
We will continue to help this country to defend itself... we could not supply weapons to a conflict where hundreds to thousands of civilians could be killed.
Solidarity with Israel does not mean we consider every single decision by the Israeli government to be good, or that we support it, even to the extent of providing military support in the form of weapons.
I did not make this decision alone, but at the end of the day, I'm fully responsible for it.
The decision to halt the export of offensive arms which could be used in Israel's war in Gaza has been met with criticism within the chancellor's own conservative party.
Collection
[
|
...
]