German Economy Minister Robert Habeck on Saturday criticized Israel’s actions in Gaza, describing its military operation in Rafah as contrary to international law.
“The hunger, the suffering of the Palestinian population and the attacks in the Gaza Strip are – as we now see in the courts – incompatible with international law,” Habeck said in Berlin, referring to a ruling by the International Court of Justice (ICJ) . ) calling on Israel to end its offensive in Rafah.
Habeck said the German government believes “that Israel should not carry out this attack, at least not in the way it did before in the Gaza Strip, bombing refugee camps and so on.”
Speaking at a festival to mark the 75th anniversary of Germany’s Basic Law, Habeck highlighted that the Palestinian militant group Hamas could end the war immediately if it laid down its arms.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz on Saturday also reiterated warnings against a large-scale Israeli military offensive on the southern Gaza city of Rafah.
“Our assertion is that war must always be conducted in a way that respects the rules of international law,” Scholz said in a public debate in Potsdam, near Berlin.
“That is why we have always been very clear that we cannot imagine an offensive in Rafah without terrible and irresponsible human losses,” he added.
