{"id":129691,"date":"2025-08-08T18:16:12","date_gmt":"2025-08-08T18:16:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/129691\/"},"modified":"2025-08-08T18:16:12","modified_gmt":"2025-08-08T18:16:12","slug":"in-major-shift-germany-suspends-arms-exports-to-israel-over-gaza-city-takeover-plan","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/129691\/","title":{"rendered":"In major shift, Germany suspends arms exports to Israel over Gaza City takeover plan"},"content":{"rendered":"

Germany vowed Friday to suspend sales of arms to Israel that could be used in Gaza, as European and Arab nations slammed the cabinet\u2019s decision to conquer Gaza City after 22 months of war against Hamas.<\/p>\n

The cabinet decision<\/a> bucked IDF warnings that the expanded fighting could endanger the remaining hostages in Gaza and deepen the humanitarian disaster there.<\/p>\n

The planned Gaza City takeover has sparked fierce domestic criticism<\/a> from the Israeli opposition and hostage families, as well as international condemnations from the United Nations, China, Russia, Britain and other countries.<\/p>\n

While US President Donald Trump said earlier this week that it was up for Israel to decide whether or not to occupy all of Gaza, US Vice President JD Vance admitted Friday after the cabinet decision that Washington has \u201csome disagreement\u201d with Jerusalem regarding the latter\u2019s prosecution of the war in Gaza, even though the US shares Jerusalem\u2019s objectives.<\/p>\n

Asked by reporters during a visit to the UK about the Israeli cabinet\u2019s decision, Vance began by saying that the administration\u2019s two main goals are ensuring that Hamas cannot continue to attack innocent people and solving the humanitarian crisis in Gaza.<\/p>\n

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\u201cThere are a lot of common objectives here. There is some disagreement about how exactly to accomplish those common objectives,\u201d Vance says.<\/p>\n

\t\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

US Vice President JD Vance speaks during a meeting with Britain\u2019s Foreign Secretary David Lammy (not pictured) at Chevening House in Kent, England, August 8, 2025. (Suzanne Plunkett\/Pool via AP)<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re not going to know exactly how to solve a very complicated problem\u2026 If it was easy to bring peace to that region of the world, it would have been done already,\u201d the US vice president added.<\/p>\n

Pressed on whether the US agrees with the UK plan to recognize a Palestinian state, Vance indicated that the UK has the right to make its own decision on the matter. However, he reiterated that the US will not be following suit.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t know what it would mean to recognize a Palestinian state given the lack of a functional government there,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, in a major change of course for Berlin, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said \u201cthe German government will not approve any exports of military equipment that could be used in the Gaza Strip until further notice.\u201d<\/p>\n

Merz, whose country is Israel\u2019s second-biggest arms supplier after the United States, acknowledged Israel\u2019s right to disarm Hamas and seek the release of the remaining 50 hostages, but said Israel\u2019s decision \u201cmakes it increasingly difficult to see how these goals can be achieved.\u201d<\/p>\n

The release of hostages and ceasefire negotiations were Germany\u2019s top priorities, along with alleviating civilian suffering in Gaza, said Merz. He also urged the Israeli government not to take any further steps towards annexing parts of the West Bank.<\/p>\n

\t\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Illustrative: A German-made INS Rahav Dolphin 2-class submarine arrives at the military port of Haifa on January 12, 2016. (AFP Photo\/Jack Guez)<\/p>\n

Merz held a phone call with Netanyahu on Friday during which the latter expressed his disappointment over the German decision, according to an Israeli readout.<\/p>\n

Employing the argument Israeli officials make in response to most international criticism of its prosecution of the warm Netanyahu said Germany was \u201crewarding Hamas terrorism.\u201d<\/p>\n

Netanyahu also insisted that Israel\u2019s goal is not to take over Gaza isn\u2019t to permanently take over Gaza, rather to remove Hamas from power so that \u201ca peaceful government to be established there,\u201d the readout from his office said.<\/p>\n

Germany\u2019s steadfast and long-standing support for Israel following the Holocaust has been badly strained by Gaza\u2019s mounting death toll and humanitarian crisis, which have prompted demands from the German public for government action.<\/p>\n

According to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, Germany provided 30% of Israel\u2019s major arms imports in 2019-2023, primarily naval equipment, including Sa\u2019ar 6-class frigates (MEKO A-100 Light Frigates), which have been used in the Gaza war.<\/p>\n

As international uproar mounted, Netanyahu posted a tweet in English, declaring, \u201cWe are not going to occupy Gaza \u2013 we are going to free Gaza from Hamas.\u201d<\/p>\n

While Netanyahu and other Israeli officials for weeks have indeed been using the word \u201coccupy\u201d to describe their plans, the cabinet decision passed on Friday morning indeed did not use that term.<\/p>\n

It instead described to a \u201ctake over,\u201d due to legal reasons pertaining to Israel\u2019s responsibility for civilian matters in Gaza, according to the Ynet news site. The outlet added, however, citing an unnamed senior Israeli official, that this distinction was superficial, and the decision in fact relates to full military rule. The conquest would stop if a hostage deal is clinched, according to the report.<\/p>\n

Moreover, IDF Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir reportedly argued during the cabinet meeting that the operation risks placing Israel under responsibility for providing services for the entire Palestinian population in Gaza. To date, Israel has argued that the UN and aid organizations are responsible for providing services, as it does not have effective control over Gaza\u2019s territory, but this could change once Israel adds Gaza City to the territory it has conquered in the Strip.<\/p>\n

\u2018Must be reconsidered\u2019<\/p>\n

European nations also assailed the decision to take over Gaza City, as European Union chief Ursula von der Leyen urged Israel to reconsider.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Israeli government\u2019s decision to further extend its military operation in Gaza must be reconsidered,\u201d said von der Leyen on X, calling\u00a0for a ceasefire, the release of all hostages and \u201cimmediate and unhindered access\u201d for humanitarian aid in Gaza.<\/p>\n

Belgian Foreign Minister Maxime Pr\u00e9vot summoned Israeli ambassador Idit Rosenzweig-Abu, Belgium\u2019s foreign ministry said Friday.<\/p>\n

In a statement, the ministry said Belgium wants to \u201cexpress (its) total disapproval of this decision, but also the continued colonization\u2026and the desire to annex the West Bank,\u201d adding that it will \u201cvigorously advocate\u201d for a reversal of Israel\u2019s decision.<\/p>\n

\t\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

IDF troops are seen on the outskirts of Gaza City\u2019s Daraj and Tuffah neighborhoods, July 23, 2025. (Emanuel Fabian\/Times of Israel)<\/p>\n

Danish Foreign Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen also told Denmark\u2019s TV2 on Friday that the Israeli decision was wrong and should immediately be reversed, while Dutch Foreign Minister Caspar Veldkamp said the plan to intensify operations in Gaza was \u201ca wrong move.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe plan of the Netanyahu government to intensify Israeli operations in Gaza is a wrong move,\u201d Velkamp said in a statement on X. \u201cThe (Gaza) humanitarian situation is catastrophic and demands immediate improvement. This decision in no way contributes to this and will also not help to get the hostages home.\u201d<\/p>\n

Russian deputy ambassador to the United Nations also conveyed Moscow\u2019s opposition to the Israeli plans, saying at a press briefing at the UN headquarters in New York that\u00a0\u201cWe think that this is a very bad step in an absolutely wrong direction, and we condemn this kind of action.\u201d<\/p>\n

The actions \u201crun counter to all the UN decisions on the Palestine-Israeli conflict,\u201d he said, according to comments carried by Turkish state news agency Anadolu.<\/p>\n

Abbas speaks with Arab leaders amid regional anger at Israel<\/p>\n

Saudi Arabia on Friday rejected Israel\u2019s plan to take over Gaza City, lambasting it for the \u201cstarvation\u201d and \u201cethnic cleansing\u201d of Palestinians in the blockaded territory.<\/p>\n

Riyadh said it \u201ccondemns in the strongest and most forceful terms the decision of the Israeli occupation authorities to occupy the Gaza Strip,\u201d in a foreign ministry statement on X.<\/p>\n

\t\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Palestinians carry packages of food taken from a humanitarian aid convoy that moved along the Morag corridor near Rafah, in the southern Gaza Strip, August 4, 2025. (AP Photo\/Mariam Dagga)<\/p>\n

It added that Saudi Arabia \u201ccategorically condemns its persistence in committing crimes of starvation, brutal practices and ethnic cleansing against the brotherly Palestinian people.\u201d Israel denies creating starvation conditions in the Gaza Strip and accuses the UN and Hamas of impeding the distribution of aid.<\/p>\n

Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas called for international action to stop what he said were Israel\u2019s \u201cdangerous\u201d plans to \u201cfully occupy the Gaza Strip,\u201d according to the PA\u2019s official news agency WAFA.<\/p>\n

Abbas reiterated the message in phone calls Friday with his Egyptian counterpart Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi and with Jordan\u2019s King Abdullah II, WAFA reported. The Egyptian foreign ministry and the Hashemite royal court both later issued statements affirming their rejection of Israel\u2019s plans.<\/p>\n

Egypt has warned in a message to the US that the Israeli proposal would lead to Hamas executing Israeli hostages it is holding, according to an Egyptian diplomat cited by Lebanese newspaper Al-Akhbar.<\/p>\n

According to the report, Hamas and the other terror groups holding the hostages \u201chave orders to \u2018neutralize\u2019 them if their captors come under siege and are unable to escape alive.\u201d<\/p>\n

The report also stated that senior Egyptian officials have demanded an urgent return to the negotiating table between Israel and Hamas regarding a ceasefire in Gaza, and that Sissi has requested to be in direct contact on the matter with US President Donald Trump.<\/p>\n

\t\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

US President Donald Trump, left, gives a thumbs up to members of the media as he greets Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi, center, at the White House on April 3, 2017. (AP Photo\/Andrew Harnik)<\/p>\n

Hamas on Friday demanded that the United States and international courts stop Israel from carrying out its planned takeover.<\/p>\n

The terror group said\u00a0Israel\u2019s plans were proof that Netanyahu and his government disregard the lives of the hostages, as the government knows that expanding the military operation \u201cwill lead to their sacrifice.\u201d<\/p>\n

According to the statement, Israel\u2019s decision explained why the country last month abruptly withdrew its negotiators from ceasefire-hostage talks, which Hamas said were \u201con the verge of reaching a ceasefire agreement.\u201d<\/p>\n

Israel and the US pulled their negotiating teams from Doha late last month after Hamas requested amendments to a partial ceasefire and hostage release deal that the two countries found unacceptable.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Germany vowed Friday to suspend sales of arms to Israel that could be used in Gaza, as European…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":129692,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[99,50],"class_list":{"0":"post-129691","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-news","8":"tag-israel","9":"tag-news"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/114994517438278136","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/129691","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=129691"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/129691\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/129692"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=129691"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=129691"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=129691"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}