German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius said on Thursday that Berlin is considering stopping supplying weapons to Israel any longer.
The reason was US President Joe Biden's statement that the United States would stop arms shipments to Israel if it continued the siege of the city of Rafah in the Gaza Strip. “This matter is currently under discussion,” the minister said on the Heute Journal television program broadcast by the German channel ZDF. He added that the responsibility for this lies with the Chancellery and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
According to Pistorius, they discussed this matter “behind closed doors.” When the host asked him if he understood the US government, the German Defense Minister replied: “Yes, I can understand that.” Pistorius told the TV program that it was important for Israel to “continue focusing on de-escalation.”
Genocide
Israel, backed by Germany, has been waging a bloody attack on Gaza since October. Nearly 35,000 Palestinians were killed and 80,000 others were injured, most of them children and women. Nearly nine out of ten residents are displaced and suffer from lack of food, water and medicine.
Israel is accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice. In a preliminary ruling issued in January, this international court ordered Tel Aviv to stop acts of genocide and stop obstructing international humanitarian aid to civilians suffering in Gaza.
In a new ruling issued at the end of March, the International Court of Justice once again ordered Israel to allow emergency aid facilities for Gaza residents.
