By Sarah Marsh, Matthias Williams and Thomas Escritt
TURKU, Finland/BERLIN, May 27 (Reuters) – German Chancellor Friedrich Merz delivered his most severe rebuke of Israel to date on Tuesday, criticising massive air strikes on Gaza as no longer justified by the need to fight Hamas and “no longer comprehensible”.
The message, delivered from a press conference in Finland, reflects a broader shift in public opinion but also a greater willingness from top-ranking German politicians to criticise Israel’s conduct since the October 7, 2023 attacks by Hamas.
There was similar criticism from Merz’s foreign minister Johann Wadephul and calls among his junior coalition partner, the Social Democrats, to halt arms exports to Israel or else risk German complicity in war crimes.
While not a complete rupture, the shift in tone is significant in a country whose leadership follows a policy of special responsibility for Israel, known as the Staatsraeson, due to the legacy of the Nazi Holocaust.
Germany, along with the United States, has been one of Israel’s staunchest supporters, but Merz’s words come as the European Union is reviewing its Israel policy and Britain, France and Canada also threatened “concrete actions” over Gaza.
