Germany Urges Continued Access to Gaza Amid Israeli Restrictions
BERLIN : Julia Kloeckner, speaker of Germany’s lower house of parliament, briefly visited the Israeli-controlled part of the Gaza Strip on Thursday, becoming the first German official to enter the territory since Hamas’s October 2023 attack on Israel triggered the ongoing conflict.
Kloeckner spent about an hour in the area, gaining limited insight into conditions under strict Israeli military control. She called for continued access for politicians to obtain “reliable assessments of the situation” and urged that military zones not become permanent barriers to observation.
Germany has long been a strong supporter of Israel, though public opinion has recently grown critical of Israeli policies in Gaza. In recent months, Chancellor Friedrich Merz has delivered measured critiques, and the German Foreign Ministry condemned Israeli plans to tighten control over the West Bank, warning they could amount to “de facto annexation.”
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