Middle East updates: Germany says Gaza aid 'insufficient' – DW – 08/02/2025
Germany airdrops more humanitarian aid into Gaza, with the German government also saying more needed to be done to improve the situation in the territory.
Meanwhile, US envoy Steve Witkoff told families of Israeli hostages held captive by Hamas that he would secure a deal to make sure their loved ones return.Germany's Bundeswehr armed forces delivered about 9.6 tons of aid into Gaza on Saturday, according to the DPA news agency.
An A400M military transport aircraft dropped 22 pallets of humanitarian aid containing food and medical supplies into Gaza, the report said.
The Israeli military said countries like France, Egypt, Jordan and the United Arab Emirates delivered about 90 pallets of aid into Gaza on Saturday.
A United Nations-affiliated organization that tracks food security worldwide issued a dire warning earlier this week about the hunger crisis in the Gaza Strip.
It confirmed that, based on data up to July 25, a "worse-case" famine scenario, was unfolding across Gaza.
Israeli authorities control the only three border crossings at the Strip and cut off all supplies to Gaza at the beginning of March.
Israeli authorities then reopened some aid centers in May, but with restrictions they said were designed to stop goods from being stolen by Hamas militants.
Hamas is designated as a terrorist organization by Israel, the US, Germany, the EU and others.
Malnutrition-related deaths spiked in Gaza in July, according to the World Health Organization.
Airdrops have been sharply criticized by some humanitarian groups as expensive, inefficient and dangerous.
US envoy Steve Witkoff on Saturday visited Hostages Square in Tel Aviv and vowed to secure the release of the remaining hostages in Gaza.
"We will get your children home and hold Hamas responsible for any bad acts on their part," Witkoff told families of Israeli hostages who had gathered at the square to stage a protest to call upon the Israeli government to secure a deal to release their loved ones from captivity.
Witkoff was cited as saying so, according to a statement by the Hostages and Missing Families Forum. He added, "We will do what's right for the Gazan people."
Protesters had gathered at the square after a video of an Israeli hostage in Gaza was released by the Palestinian Islamic Jihad on Thursday.
Hamas then released a video of Evyatar David, another Israeli hostage, on Friday. The video showed David in a visibly fragile state. It is unclear when those videos were filmed.
Witkoff on Friday also visited an aid distribution site in southern Gaza run by the US-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation. The foundation has been widely criticized for failing to improve conditions in the besieged enclave.
The amount of aid entering Gaza remains "very insufficient" despite limited improvement, the German government said on Saturday, after ministers discussed ways to heighten pressure on Israel.
Germany "notes limited initial progress in the delivery of humanitarian aid to the population of the Gaza Strip, which, however, remains very insufficient to alleviate the emergency situation," government spokesman Stefan Kornelius said in a statement. "Israel remains obligated to ensure the full delivery of aid," Kornelius added.
German ministers had gathered on Saturday, following German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul's trip to Israel and the Palestinian Territories on Thursday and Friday.
Wadephul had called upon Israeli authorities to ensure safe access for United Nations agencies to deliver humanitarian aid to Gaza, saying the current restrictions were worsening the crisis.
"The humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza must end now," Wadephul had said, stressing that aid distribution through the UN had long worked effectively and needed to resume without obstacles.
Good evening and welcome to weekend edition of the Middle East blog. We're tracking the news about Germany having delivered more aid into Gaza, as well as US envoy Steve Witkoff's visit to the region.
Witkoff has met with families of Israeli hostages held captive by Hamas and vowed to secure a deal to bring their loved ones home.
But some families were disappointed and said they have would have liked to hear more about practical ways to secure that deal.
Follow along for news, analysis, and explainers on the situation in Gaza, Israel, and the wider Middle East, on the weekend of August 2 and August 3.
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DW
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Why the birth rate in Germany continues to nosedive – DW – 08/03/2025
Women in Germany are having just 1.35 children on average — a record low level. Does this say something about the country's state of prosperity, or is it a sign that women are asserting their rights? When Julia Brandner recently presented her book "I'm Not Kidding," the 30-year-old influencer and comedian was confronted by a barrage of insults. One 72-year-old mother of three children took to the floor and attacked her in front of the audience as an egoist, Brandner told DW. However, the book, in which the Austrian-born and Berlin-based Brandner explains, with great humor and frankness, why she never wanted to become pregnant and underwent sterilization for that reason, also drew many positive reactions. Speaking about the hate that she has experienced from several quarters, she said: "You get stamped as a revolutionary. If you say you don't want children, you are very quickly blamed for sabotaging the pension system and the intergenerational contract, and actually for singlehandedly bringing about the extinction of the human race." This criticism is fueled by a number that many young women celebrate as a sign of progress in female self-determination, but that others see as a fearful portent of dwindling prosperity and a continuously shrinking population: 1.35. That's the average number of children had by women in Germany in 2024, according to the Federal Statistical Office. The average birth rate for women with German nationality was just 1.23, a figure that rose to 1.89 for non-German nationals. In total, 677,117 children were born in Germany in 2024, a decrease of 15,872 from the year before. Brandner was 28 years old when she was sterilized. Her gynecologist demanded a psychiatric assessment of her mental capacity before carrying out the operation. Brandner was surprised by the controversy caused by her book. She said she is noticing an increasing rightward shift in these tumultuous times, along with a return to more "traditional" values, where women stand at the stove and are supposed to look after the children. The far-right Alternative for Germany party (AfD) has also latched onto the topic of the sinking fertility rate and is calling for more children instead of immigration as a way to combat the lack of skilled workers. Brandner feels that even in 2025, the topic of children is still very widely seen as something that concerns just women. "The many single mothers are being left to cope on their own, while fathers are often let off the hook. For women, having children puts them at huge risk of poverty. It can't be that even today a woman has to give up her prosperity to ensure the prosperity of society," she said. To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video But Germany isn't the only country experiencing a sinking fertility rate, by far. Numbers are going down drastically across the world, reaching as low as 0.75 in South Korea. Vietnam rang alarm bells earlier this year, when its birth rate hit a record low. The only exception is the Sahel zone, where women are still having more than five children on average. Michaela Kreyenfeld is a sociologist and was one of the experts behind the German government's family report. She sees a growing connection between economic crises and uncertainties and the birth rate. "Is it egoism or simply autonomous behavior that women don't want to have any children? We have been talking about that since the 1970s at least, so it's nothing new," she told DW. What is new, she said, are the multiple crises: "The COVID pandemic, rampant climate change and high inflation. For the young generation in particular, that is a new situation," said Kreyenfeld. A countermovement in the US is trying to buck the trend, with the richest man in the world as its most prominent representative: Pronatalists and Elon Musk want to bring as many children into the world as possible. However, Kreyenfeld pointed to Romania as an example from eastern European history that can serve as a warning. "President Ceausescu used extreme measures, such as limiting access to contraceptives and imposing draconian penalties for abortions, to push the birth rate from 1.8 to four within a year. The result was the 'lost generation' in Romania: the generation in which parents didn't look after their children because they didn't want them." To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video So, what can be done to raise the birth rate again without state pressure? Martin Bujard, the deputy director of the Federal Institute for Population Research, has the answer. Bujard, an expert on the birth rate in Germany who knows the statistics of the last two decades down to the last decimal place, said the debate about women like Brander, who have deliberately chosen to remain childless, is missing the real point. "If someone doesn't want to have any children, it's their decision. This shouldn't be stigmatized, and, indeed, it is becoming increasingly acceptable to lead a childless life," he said. What is really at issue here is something else, he said. "We have asked how many children people want, and this showed that in 2024 both women and men wanted about 1.8 children on average — in other words, well over the birth rate of 1.35. If this existing desire for children was fulfilled, we would have fewer demographic problems and much more prosperity in the long run." "Fertility gap" is the term used for the difference between the desired number of children and the birth rate, such as when many women perhaps have just one child instead of the two they would like to have. This can be because they don't find a stable partnership until later in life, because children are increasingly being seen in social debates as a problem and not an asset and/or because the state could do more than it is doing to make it easier to have a family. Bujard praises the family-friendly policies implemented by the German state in the past, such as increasing the number of child care centers and all-day schools and introducing the parental allowance in the early 2000s. He said this had been a paradigm shift that was widely noticed internationally, with Germany having had one of the lowest birth rates in the world. However, he takes a critical view of the current situation. "Since 2013, we have had a legal right to child care, but this is no longer very reliable, as such care is often canceled. There is a shortage of child care workers, and the system receives too little money in the end. If there was enough money there, one could talk about higher pay for child care staff," he said. To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video Germany needs to make a bigger effort again with its family policies, as the current trend is worrying: 22% of women and 36% of men between 30 and 50 years of age do not have children, according to the Federal Ministry for Family Affairs, Senior Citizens, Women and Youth. Figures from the Federal Statistical Office show that men in Germany had just 1.24 children on average in 2024. Above all, young female academics are increasingly remaining childless. For this reason, Bujard said, the only way is to improve the compatibility of work and family. "The worst-case scenario is that there will be even more serious problems with social insurance in the long term with a continually sinking birth rate in 2030. That would cause serious harm to prosperity: Contributions for social insurance would have to go up, pensions would be lower, and there would also have to be more cuts in the health system and the care sector," he you're here: Every Tuesday, DW editors round up what is happening in German politics and society. You can sign up here for the weekly email newsletter Berlin Briefing.
Int'l Business Times
8 hours ago
- Int'l Business Times
Bangladesh Protest Victim Gives Evidence At Ex-PM Trial
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DW
11 hours ago
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Middle East: Israeli minister demands Gaza reoccupation – DW – 08/03/2025
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Ben-Gvir, a settler from the occupied West Bank, commented during a visit to Jerusalem's flashpoint Temple Mount, adding that Palestinians should be "encouraged to emigrate voluntarily." His remarks are likely to fuel further claims that Israel is pursuing a policy of "ethnic cleansing" in Gaza, charges the Israeli government denies. The lawmaker said the footage was being used by the Palestinian side to exert pressure on Israel. Temple Mount, known to Muslims as Haram al-Sharif, is home to the Al-Aqsa Mosque and the Dome of the Rock, making it the third-holiest site in Islam. For Jews, it is the location of the destroyed biblical temples. Ben-Gvir said he prayed at the site, despite a long-standing arrangement that non-Muslims are not allowed to do so. He has visited the site in the past, calling for Jewish prayer to be allowed there, prompting Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to issue statements saying that this was not Israel's policy. Tens of thousands of demonstrators braved rainy weather to march across the iconic Sydney Harbour Bridge in support of the Palestinian people on Sunday. Protesters called for peace and aid deliveries in the war-torn Gaza Strip, where UN-mandated experts have warned a man-made "famine is unfolding." Nearly two years into the war in Gaza, several governments and humanitarian organizations, along with the public across the world, have condemned the widespread starvation. The organizers of Sunday's rally dubbed it the "March for Humanity." Wikileaks founder Julian Assange was one of the demonstrators. To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video Some attending the march carried pots and pans as symbols of hunger, often seen in images coming out of Gaza. The protesters also waved Palestinian flags and chanted, "We are all Palestinians." Australia's Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has said he supports a two-state solution and that Israel's denial of aid and killing of civilians "cannot be defended or ignored." Good morning and welcome to our weekend blog, which covers Gaza, Israel and all updates on the Middle East. On Saturday, the German government mounted pressure on Israel, saying the amount of aid entering Gaza remains "very insufficient" despite limited improvement. The Bundeswehr, Germany's armed forces, delivered 9.6 tons of aid into Gaza, according to the DPA news agency. Meanwhile, a chilling video surfaced from Gaza, leading to widespread anger. Hamas released a propaganda video of an Israeli hostage in Gaza, Evyatar David, who has been held captive since October 7, 2023. In one portion of the video, a frail-looking David is being forced to dig a hole, which he says will be his grave. This Sunday morning, we will continue to track news from the region. Stay tuned. The Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS) humanitarian organization said Israeli forces attacked its headquarters in the southern Gaza city of Khan Younis. The PRCS said the attack killed one staff member and injured three others. The PRCS posted a video of what it said was the Israeli attack on social media platform X, with the footage showing fire and an explosion inside a building. The Israeli military has yet to comment. Turkey has begun delivering Azerbaijani natural gas to Syria. The Turkey-Syria Natural Gas Pipeline, which goes through the southern Turkish border region of Kilis, was inaugurated in an event on Saturday, with Turkish, Azerbaijani, Syrian and Qatari officials in attendance. Taking part in the Kilis inauguration ceremony, Turkish Energy Minister Alparslan Bayraktar called the opening of the pipeline a "historic moment." Bayraktar said that "in the initial phase, up to two billion cubic meters of natural gas per year could be exported to Syria." Bayraktar said gas deliveries will first be sent to Aleppo in northern Syria, and will later be extended to the city of Homs in the central part of the country. Syrian Energy Minister Mohammed al-Bashir, who was at the launch event, hailed the gas pipeline as a "strategic step" that boosts energy security and will "positively impact the economy and living conditions." Syria's Sunni Islamist-led interim government has close ties with Turkey, with Turkish investments playing a key role in rebuilding the country after the ouster of Syrian leader Bashar Assad. Turkey opposed Assad's rule and backed rebels fighting against him during the Syrian civil war, which ignited in 2011. The family of Evyatar David, an Israeli held hostage in Gaza, saw him for the first time after Hamas released a video of him, looking very frail. The propaganda video has led to widespread anger, with families of Israeli hostages held captive by Hamas calling on the Israeli government to secure their release. In one section of the video, Evyatar David is shown being forced to dig a hole in the ground that he says will be his grave. David was kidnapped at the Nova Music Festival on October 7, 2023, during the terrorist attack by Hamas in which 1,200 people were killed and 250 taken hostage. His family said in a statement that "Hamas is using our son as a live experiment in a vile hunger campaign. The deliberate starvation of our son as part of a propaganda campaign is one of the most horrifying acts the world has seen." The video is juxtaposed with pictures of starving Palestinian children. In a UN statement on Tuesday, UN-backed food security experts said that "the worst-case scenario of famine is currently playing out in Gaza," with UN World Food Programme director of emergencies Ross Smith saying the situation was "unlike anything we have seen in this century." Germany's Bundeswehr armed forces delivered about 9.6 tons of aid into Gaza on Saturday, according to the DPA news agency. An A400M military transport aircraft dropped 22 pallets of humanitarian aid containing food and medical supplies into Gaza, the report said. The Israeli military said countries like France, Egypt, Jordan and the United Arab Emirates delivered about 90 pallets of aid into Gaza on Saturday. A United Nations-affiliated organization that tracks food security worldwide issued a dire warning earlier this week about the hunger crisis in the Gaza Strip. It confirmed that, based on data up to July 25, a "worse-case" famine scenario, was unfolding across Gaza. Israeli authorities control the only three border crossings at the Strip and cut off all supplies to Gaza at the beginning of March. Israeli authorities then reopened some aid centers in May, but with restrictions they said were designed to stop goods from being stolen by Hamas militants. Hamas is designated as a terrorist organization by Israel, the US, Germany, the EU and others. Malnutrition-related deaths spiked in Gaza in July, according to the World Health Organization. Airdrops have been sharply criticized by some humanitarian groups as expensive, inefficient and dangerous. To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video US envoy Steve Witkoff on Saturday visited Hostages Square in Tel Aviv and vowed to secure the release of the remaining hostages in Gaza. "We will get your children home and hold Hamas responsible for any bad acts on their part," Witkoff told families of Israeli hostages who had gathered at the square to stage a protest to call upon the Israeli government to secure a deal to release their loved ones from captivity. Witkoff was cited as saying so, according to a statement by the Hostages and Missing Families Forum. He added "We will do what's right for the Gazan people." Protesters had gathered at the square after videos of Israeli hostages held in Gaza were released by militant groups, sparking anger and outrage. One video of an Israeli hostage was released by the Palestinian militant group Islamic Jihad on Thursday. A second video was released by Hamas on Friday (see posts above). It is unclear when those videos were filmed. Witkoff on Friday also visited an aid distribution site in southern Gaza run by theUS-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation. The foundation has been widely criticized for failing to improve conditions in the besieged enclave. The amount of aid entering Gaza remains "very insufficient" despite limited improvement, the German government said on Saturday, after ministers discussed ways to heighten pressure on Israel. Germany "notes limited initial progress in the delivery of humanitarian aid to the population of the Gaza Strip, which, however, remains very insufficient to alleviate the emergency situation," government spokesman Stefan Kornelius said in a statement. "Israel remains obligated to ensure the full delivery of aid," Kornelius added. German ministers had gathered on Saturday, following German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul's trip to Israel and the Palestinian Territories on Thursday and Friday. Wadephul had called upon Israeli authorities to ensure safe access for UN agencies to deliver humanitarian aid to Gaza, saying the current restrictions were worsening the crisis. "The humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza must end now," Wadephul had said, stressing that aid distribution through the UN had long worked effectively and needed to resume without obstacles. To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video Good evening and welcome to the weekend edition of the Middle East blog. We're tracking the news about Germany having delivered more aid into Gaza, as well as US envoy Steve Witkoff's visit to the region. Witkoff has met with families of Israeli hostages held captive by Hamas and vowed to secure a deal to bring their loved ones home. But some families were disappointed and said they have would have liked to hear more about practical ways to secure that deal. Follow along for news, analysis, and explainers on the situation in Gaza, Israel, and the wider Middle East, on the weekend of August 2 and August 3.
