Germany will launch an immediate airlift to deliver humanitarian aid to Gaza, Chancellor Friedrich Merz said Monday, as Berlin weighs increased pressure on Israel over the “catastrophic” situation in the enclave, where nearly 60,000 have died and starvation is rapidly worsening.
The operation is set to begin "immediately," he said following a meeting of the Security Cabinet in Berlin.
Defense Minister Boris Pistorius will work closely with France and the United Kingdom, both of which have expressed willingness to join the effort to transport food and aid, Merz said.
"We know this can only be a small help for the people in Gaza," the chancellor said. "But at least it is a contribution that we are glad to make."
While it welcomed Israel's announcement of a halt in military operations for 10 hours a day in parts of Gaza as an "important first step", it agreed more must follow.
Asked if the council discussed sanctions like suspending the EU pact governing relations with Israel, a move Germany has in the past rejected, Merz said the council had discussed what options were available.
"We are keeping such steps on the table," he said.
Before making any decisions, however, he would try to speak with Netanyahu later on Monday and Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul would travel to the region on Thursday, possibly together with his British and French counterparts. The German government would then reassess the situation over the weekend.
In the meantime, Berlin would do what it could to help alleviate the humanitarian situation, launching an airlift in cooperation with Jordan to deliver aid into Gaza.
U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Monday called on the international community to reject Israel's use of hunger as a weapon of war.
U.N. agencies have been warning of life-threatening hunger in Gaza as aid supplies dried up and international pressure has been building for a cease-fire to allow a massive relief operation.
Israel's government, under Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, furiously denies that it is using hunger as a weapon of war, and instead accuses the aid agencies of failing to pick up and distribute aid delivered to Gaza's border crossing points.
Jordan has served as a key hub for humanitarian aid deliveries to Gaza and has parachuted food into the territory for the past two days.
