Germany will \u201cnot approve any exports of military equipment that could be used in the Gaza Strip until further notice,\u201d German Chancellor Friedrich Merz announced August 8. Germany is the second-largest arms exporter to Israel and an outspoken ally. However, it opposes Israel\u2019s military operation that aims to completely eliminate the Hamas terrorist organization.<\/p>\n
From Oct. 7, 2023, to May 13, 2025, Germany approved the delivery of weapons and military equipment worth \u20ac485.1 million (us$564.3 million) to Israel. When the previous government temporarily stopped approving weapons deliveries in 2024, Merz called it out for not supporting the Jewish people in their hour of need. But now he is changing his tune.<\/p>\n
Merz said the halt is due to \u201ceven tougher military action by the Israeli Army in the Gaza Strip, as decided by the Israeli cabinet.\u201d On Thursday night, the security cabinet approved a plan presented by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to \u201cdefeat\u201d Hamas in the Gaza Strip and to take control of Gaza City. The plan allows for humanitarian aid to be delivered to the civilian population outside the combat zones; Hamas has previously stolen such supplies for itself.<\/p>\n
The German government remains deeply concerned \u201cabout the ongoing suffering of the civilian population in the Gaza Strip,\u201d Merz said. He urged the Israeli government \u201cnot to take any further steps toward annexing the West Bank.\u201d<\/p>\n
While he overtly agrees that the disarmament of Hamas is essential, he expressed doubt that Israel\u2019s military goals are leading to that end.<\/p>\n
German Finance Minister and Vice Chancellor Lars Klingbeil said that the \u201chumanitarian suffering in Gaza is unbearable.\u201d He noted that while Germany stands in full solidarity with the State of Israel, wrongdoing must be called out.<\/p>\n
While many, particularly on the left, demanded stopping weapons exports to Israel, the decision has also aroused much criticism. Marion Horn wrote<\/a> for Bild:<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n The chancellor says that disarming Hamas is essential and that it should play no role in Gaza\u2019s future. How exactly is this supposed to be achieved solely through \u201cdetermined negotiations on a ceasefire\u201d?<\/p>\n
Does Merz really believe that Hamas can be persuaded by kind words? That won\u2019t work. If he really believes that Hamas will back down because Israel is no longer receiving weapons, then I wonder how he came to this narrow conclusion.<\/p>\n
What a moral declaration of bankruptcy. Friedrich Merz, of all people, who once sharply attacked Olaf Scholz when he hesitated to supply weapons to Israel\u2014it is now Friedrich Merz himself who is turning off the tap. As leader of the opposition, he thundered at him: \u201cAnyone who declares Israel\u2019s security to be a matter of national interest must also deliver.\u201d<\/p>\n
\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Some of the Christian Democratic Union\u2019s and Christian Social Union\u2019s party colleagues are angry about it. Under csu leader Franz Josef Strauss, Germany developed close ties with Israel in the second half of the 20th century and became one of its primary weapons exporters. According to Bild, current csu leader Markus S\u00f6der was particularly upset about not being consulted prior to the decision. Former Bavarian State Premier Horst Seehofer said: \u201cThis foreign-policy mistake will have long-lasting effects.\u201d<\/p>\n Following the announcement, Netanyahu expressed his disappointment in a phone call with Merz. A statement by the Prime Minister\u2019s Office read: \u201cInstead of supporting Israel\u2019s just war against Hamas, which carried out the worst attack against Jews since the Holocaust, Germany is rewarding terrorism.\u201d Netanyahu clarified that \u201cIsrael\u2019s goal is not to take over Gaza but to liberate it from Hamas.\u201d<\/p>\n While Germany appears on the surface to be one of Israel\u2019s greatest allies, it has repeatedly opposed Israel\u2019s military goals. We can see more and more clearly why Bible prophecy warns the Jewish people against putting their trust in Germany.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen Ephraim saw his sickness, and Judah saw his wound, then went Ephraim to the Assyrian, and sent to king Jareb: yet could he not heal you, nor cure you of your wound\u201d (Hosea 5:13). Trumpet editor in chief Gearld Flurry explains in his booklet Jerusalem in Prophecy<\/a> that both Ephraim (referring to Britain) and Judah (called \u201cIsrael\u201d today) go to Assyria (or Germany) for help. He then states: \u201cIs the peace pact with the Arabs the Israeli wound that God refers to in Hosea 5:13? There would have been no peace pact if Judah would have trusted God instead of men.\u201d<\/p>\n Mr. Flurry then gives a detailed explanation on what Judah\u2019s wound is and how it is driving the little Middle Eastern nation into Germany\u2019s hands:<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n The Jews have also given Gaza, Jericho, Bethlehem and other West Bank areas back to the Palestinians. It seems the world has forgotten that those areas were won in a war where the Arabs were trying to annihilate the Jews. This land-for-peace process is almost unheard of in history. \u2026<\/p>\n
God gave Bethlehem\u2014the birthplace of Christ\u2014to the Jews. Through the \u201cpeace\u201d process, they gave it to the Palestinians. The Jews rejected and crucified Christ almost 2,000 years ago. They still reject Him today. But then, so do most people who profess to be Christians.<\/p>\n
The Jews have given back many other biblical sites to the Arabs. America and Britain have strongly urged them to do so. We fail to realize that such a lack of faith is why all the adults of ancient Israel had to die in the Sinai wilderness.<\/p>\n
Throughout this terribly misnamed \u201cpeace\u201d process\u2014involving giving up land and seeing no appreciable drop in violence\u2014Palestinian leaders have consistently told politicians and media that they want peaceful coexistence with Israel while simultaneously promising to their people Israel\u2019s destruction. \u2026<\/p>\n
Through the peace process, Judah has become vulnerable to the enemy, with very little freedom to strike back.<\/p>\n
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