BERLIN: Germany, France, and the United Kingdom are considering sending their foreign ministers to Israel next week, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said Tuesday, as international pressure mounts over Gaza’s dire humanitarian crisis.
“We will probably ask the three foreign ministers of France, the United Kingdom and Germany to travel to Israel together next Thursday to present the position of… the three governments,” Merz told a press conference in Berlin alongside Jordan’s King Abdullah II.
Amid warnings that starvation is spreading in the Gaza Strip after nearly 22 months of Israel’s military offensive, the three European countries have stepped up their calls for Israel to urgently allow more aid into the Palestinian territory.
Last week, the three countries released a joint statement urging an end to the “humanitarian catastrophe” in Gaza.
“We assume that the Israeli government is willing to acknowledge that something must be done now,” said Merz on Tuesday.
Germany has traditionally been one of Israel’s staunchest supporters, but Merz has increasingly voiced criticism of its offensive in Gaza.
He announced late Monday that Germany would work with Jordan to airlift humanitarian aid into the territory.
On Tuesday, Merz said two German air transport aircraft were already en route to Jordan and would start air-dropping aid into Gaza “from the weekend at the latest, possibly even tomorrow”.
King Abdullah II added that, while he was grateful for such moves, airdrops were just a “drop in the ocean”, and called for more trucks transporting supplies to be allowed into Gaza.
Israel imposed a total blockade of aid on Gaza from March to May.
Facing international pressure, Israel this week launched a daily pause in fighting and opened secure routes to enable UN and non-governmental agencies to distribute food on Gaza’s devastated streets.
Israel’s devastating offensive in Gaza began after Hamas’s October 7, 2023, attack on Israel.
Since October 2023, the Israeli military offensive has killed more than 60,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children, in Gaza, the territory’s health ministry said.