Reacting to the German government’s decision to lift a suspension on the issuance of certain arms export licences to Israel for use in the occupied Gaza Strip effective today, Erika Guevara-Rosas, Amnesty International’s Senior Director for Research, Advocacy, Policy and Campaigns said:
“Germany’s decision to lift its partial suspension of weapons shipments to Israel is reckless, unlawful and sends entirely the wrong message to Israel: that it can continue committing genocide, war crimes, and apartheid against Palestinians and unlawfully occupy the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and Gaza without fear of consequence.
“Germany is one of Israel’s major arms suppliers. The partial and long overdue suspension of arms transfers by Germany was one of the few forms of meaningful pressure applied by the international community to Israel’s genocide against Palestinians in Gaza.
“Now is absolutely not the time to ease this pressure. On the contrary, this is the time to ensure that Israel stops its violations of international law, including its unlawful occupation as indicated by the International Court of Justice in July 2024 and agreed by the UN General Assembly. Regrettably, with this move, Germany is going down a dangerous path that must be immediately reversed and must not be followed by other states.
“As Israel continues to attack Palestinians in Gaza and restrict humanitarian aid and essential supplies and services while most of the population remains displaced and without adequate shelter, for Germany to cite the “ceasefire” and “stabilization” in Gaza as the basis for its decision to resume arms exports is wholly disingenuous.
“Amnesty International has long called for a comprehensive arms embargo on Israel, Hamas and other armed groups participating in military activities in Gaza. States must live up to their legal obligation to ensure respect for international humanitarian law; Germany and other states parties must uphold their obligations under the Arms Trade Treaty. All states have also a duty to prevent and punish genocide, to refrain from contributing to genocide and to act to bring it to an end. Governments that continue to supply arms to Israel contravene their international legal obligations.”
Background
On 8 August 2025 German Chancellor Frederick Merz announced a partial arms embargo, suspending the issuance of weapons export licences to Israel for use in the Gaza Strip “until further notice”.
The announcement followed the Israeli Security Cabinet’s decision to approve Prime Minister’s Benjamin Netanyahu’s plans to “take control” of Gaza City, where nearly one million Palestinians are currently trying to survive under inhumane conditions.
On 24 November, Germany brought an end to the partial suspension of arms transfers, announcing that it will “return to examining on a case-by-case basis the export of weapons” to Israel for use in the Occupied Gaza Strip.
Germany is Israel’s second-largest supplier of arms after the United States. According to the German government, it has issued export licences worth more than €485 million – from 7 October 2023 to 12 May 2025, including anti-tank weapons and gearboxes for Merkava tanks used in Gaza.