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<\/a><\/p>\nGerman Chancellor Friedrich Merz speaks to the media following a meeting of the federal security cabinet over the situation in Gaza on July 28, 2025 in Berlin, Germany. (Sean Gallup\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
\u201cThe even harsher military action by the Israeli army in the Gaza Strip, approved last night by the Israeli Security Cabinet, makes it increasingly difficult, from the German government\u2019s perspective, to see how these goals are to be achieved,\u201d German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said Friday in a statement.<\/p>\n
\u201cUnder these circumstances, the German government will not authorize any exports of military equipment that could be used in the Gaza Strip until further notice,\u201d the statement continued, adding that Israel must \u201ccomprehensively and sustainably improve the humanitarian situation in Gaza.\u201d<\/p>\n
While Merz stipulated that \u201chas the right to defend itself against Hamas\u2019s terror,\u201d the decisive action marks a significant shift for him. He faces significant pressure at home to address allegations of starvation in Gaza, which have spurred the United Kingdom and France to announce plans to recognize Palestinian statehood this fall.<\/p>\n
Last year, Germany was the second largest supplier of arms to Israel following the United States, according to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute. It was not immediately clear which supplies from Germany would be affected by the ban.<\/p>\n
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke with Merz following the announcement and said he \u201cexpressed his disappointment\u201d with the country\u2019s decision to embargo arms to Israel.<\/p>\n
\u201cInstead of supporting Israel\u2019s just war against Hamas, which carried out the most horrific attack against the Jewish people since the Holocaust, Germany is rewarding Hamas terrorism by embargoing arms to Israel,\u2019 a statement from the Israeli government\u2019s press office read.<\/p>\n
Germany\u2019s deep and until-now ironclad support for Israel stems from the country\u2019s sense of responsibility over its Nazi past. It was seen as a stark departure when Merz said in May, well after some of his peers had done so, that he believed the Gaza war could \u201cno longer be justified.\u201d In June, he stood out in the other direction \u2014 for characterizing Israel\u2019s attack on Iran \u201cthe dirty work Israel is doing for all of us.\u201d<\/p>\n