Latest news with #German-Israeli
Egypt Independent
28-05-2025
- Politics
- Egypt Independent
Germany's leader has criticized Israel's conduct in Gaza. Here's why that's a big deal
Berlin CNN — For decades, Germany has stood squarely in For decades, Germany has stood squarely in Israel's corner, its dark history of Jewish persecution shaping its modern-day policy of virtually unquestioned backing. In the aftermath of the Hamas October 7, 2023, attacks, the question of German political and military support for Israel was raised – and reaffirmed by then-Chancellor Olaf Scholz. But comments by new Chancellor Friedrich Merz in recent days have put Germany's support for Israel under the spotlight. 'We are dismayed by the fate of the civilian population and the terrible suffering of the civilian population' in Gaza, the chancellor said on Tuesday while on a visit to Turku, Finland. The question of what provoked Merz's sharp change in tone toward Israel remains unclear. Peter Lintl, an analyst from the German Institute of International and Security Affairs who focuses on German-Israeli relations, believes Merz wanted to get into office, start conversations with Israeli leaders and get an understanding of the direction of travel before outlining his stance. 'The conclusion, that most of the countries in the world came to, it's a horrible war where the aim is not clear anymore,' Lintl told CNN. 'It is clearly a change in tone and change in positioning of the German government.' Merz followed his Tuesday comments by questioning the current actions of the Israel Defense Forces inside Gaza. Referring to Israel's expanded operations and the humanitarian crisis in the territory, the German chancellor said that he 'no longer sees any logic as to how they serve the goal of fighting terror and freeing the hostages. In this respect, I take a very, very critical view of what has happened in the last few days.' Tuesday's language came hot on the heels of a thinly veiled threat from Merz in Berlin on Monday. 'The Israeli government must not do anything that its best friends are no longer prepared to accept,' he said. Merz has also done the previously unthinkable and questioned whether Israel may be violating international law. National interest The change of tone is particularly striking because of Germany's long-standing stance on Israel, that is connected to a theory known as 'staatsraison' or national interest. The connection of staatsraison and Israel were made by then-Chancellor Angela Merkel in 2008. She told the Israeli parliament, or Knesset, that the 'historical responsibility of Germany is part of my country's national interest (staatsraison). This means that, for me as German chancellor, Israel's security is never negotiable.' Similar words were also used by Scholz in the wake of the October 7 attacks in which Hamas militants killed more than 1,200 people in southern Israel and kidnapped some 250 others. Since Merkel's speech, and particularly after she stepped down as chancellor in 2021, 'the term got a life of its own,' the analyst Lintl says. 'It appeared that if you want to be a respected politician, you have to use the term because it came to signal … that Israel's security is German staatsraison. It is the minimum threshold we use to distance ourselves from the past,' Lintl says. That 'past' refers largely to the Holocaust in which the Nazis killed more than six million Jews. In Finland on Tuesday, Merz was quick to reiterate he is not abandoning staatsraison entirely. 'Israel's security and existence are, as we have been saying for many years and decades, part of our German staatsraison,' but he has clearly set out to clarify it. Lintl added: 'We didn't know how this government will conduct itself, or how this government policy toward Israel will look – right now we have more of an idea.' It remains unclear if Merz and Germany's relationship with Israel will shift significantly. Merz has maintained he will continue to talk with Israeli leader Benjamin Netanyahu. Merz has also said he would find 'ways and means' for Israel's prime minister to visit Germany given the ICC (International Criminal Court) arrest warrant out for him. For now, the statements from Israel seem muted, and respectful. The Israeli Ambassador to Germany Ron Prosor told German TV Tuesday morning, 'when somebody criticizes Israel, and when Friedrich Merz makes this criticism, we listen very carefully because he is a friend.' Inke Kappler contributed reporting.
Yahoo
27-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Germany's leader has criticized Israel's conduct in Gaza. Here's why that's a big deal
For decades, Germany has stood squarely in Israel's corner, its dark history of Jewish persecution shaping its modern-day policy of virtually unquestioned backing. In the aftermath of the Hamas October 7, 2023, attacks, the question of German political and military support for Israel was raised – and reaffirmed by then-Chancellor Olaf Scholz. But comments by new Chancellor Friedrich Merz in recent days have put Germany's support for Israel under the spotlight. 'We are dismayed by the fate of the civilian population and the terrible suffering of the civilian population' in Gaza, the chancellor said on Tuesday while on a visit to Turku, Finland. The question of what provoked Merz's sharp change in tone toward Israel remains unclear. Peter Lintl, an analyst from the German Institute of International and Security Affairs who focuses on German-Israeli relations, believes Merz wanted to get into office, start conversations with Israeli leaders and get an understanding of the direction of travel before outlining his stance. 'The conclusion, that most of the countries in the world came to, it's a horrible war where the aim is not clear anymore,' Lintl told CNN. 'It is clearly a change in tone and change in positioning of the German government.' Merz followed his Tuesday comments by questioning the current actions of the Israel Defense Forces inside Gaza. Referring to Israel's expanded operations and the humanitarian crisis in the territory, the German chancellor said that he 'no longer sees any logic as to how they serve the goal of fighting terror and freeing the hostages. In this respect, I take a very, very critical view of what has happened in the last few days.' Tuesday's language came hot on the heels of a thinly veiled threat from Merz in Berlin on Monday. 'The Israeli government must not do anything that its best friends are no longer prepared to accept,' he said. Merz has also done the previously unthinkable and questioned whether Israel may be violating international law. The change of tone is particularly striking because of Germany's long-standing stance on Israel, that is connected to a theory known as 'staatsraison' or national interest. The connection of staatsraison and Israel were made by then-Chancellor Angela Merkel in 2008. She told the Israeli parliament, or Knesset, that the 'historical responsibility of Germany is part of my country's national interest (staatsraison). This means that, for me as German chancellor, Israel's security is never negotiable.' Similar words were also used by Scholz in the wake of the October 7 attacks in which Hamas militants killed more than 1,200 people in southern Israel and kidnapped some 250 others. Since Merkel's speech, and particularly after she stepped down as chancellor in 2021, 'the term got a life of its own,' the analyst Lintl says. 'It appeared that if you want to be a respected politician, you have to use the term because it came to signal … that Israel's security is German staatsraison. It is the minimum threshold we use to distance ourselves from the past,' Lintl says. That 'past' refers largely to the Holocaust in which the Nazis killed more than 6 million Jews. In Finland on Tuesday, Merz was quick to reiterate he is not abandoning staatsraison entirely. 'Israel's security and existence are, as we have been saying for many years and decades, part of our German staatsraison,' but he has clearly set out to clarify it. Lintl added: 'We didn't know how this government will conduct itself, or how this government policy toward Israel will look – right now we have more of an idea.' It remains unclear if Merz and Germany's relationship with Israel will shift significantly. Merz has maintained he will continue to talk with Israeli leader Benjamin Netanyahu. Merz has also said he would find 'ways and means' for Israel's prime minister to visit Germany given the ICC (International Criminal Court) arrest warrant out for him. For now, the statements from Israel seem muted, and respectful. The Israeli Ambassador to Germany Ron Prosor told German TV Tuesday morning, 'when somebody criticizes Israel, and when Friedrich Merz makes this criticism, we listen very carefully because he is a friend.' Inke Kappler contributed reporting.
NDTV
23-05-2025
- Politics
- NDTV
Yaron Lischinsky And Sarah Milgrim: Israeli Embassy Staff Shot Dead In US
Washington: Before they were killed by a gunman outside a Washington Jewish museum, Yaron Lischinsky had planned to make a formal proposal of marriage to Sarah Milgrim in Jerusalem next week. As their deaths late Wednesday intensify the international spotlight on the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza, here is what we know about the two Israeli embassy staffers shot dead after attending a networking event for young professionals. Yaron Lischinsky The 30-year-old had worked as a researcher at the Israeli embassy in Washington since 2022. He was born in Nuremburg, Germany and moved to Israel at the age of 16 and had dual nationality. Lischinsky studied at Reichman University in Tel Aviv and Hebrew University in Jerusalem. Ron Prosor, the Israeli ambassador in Berlin, described Lischinsky as a "brilliant" and "curious" student when he taught him at Reichman. Nissim Otmazgin, a humanities professor at Hebrew University, said Yaron had dreamed of becoming a diplomat. Lischinsky spoke fluent German, according to the German-Israeli Friendship Society. Volker Beck, the society president, said Lischinsky's "interest in German-Israeli relations and ways to achieve peaceful coexistence in the Middle East brightened the environment around him." He met Sarah Milgrim when she started working at the Israeli mission. According to Yechiel Leiter, Israel's ambassador in Washington, Lischinsky had bought a ring. The couple planned to fly to Jerusalem on Sunday to meet his family and Lischinsky was to propose there next week. Sarah Milgrim The LinkedIn photo of 26-year-old Sarah Milgrim showed a smiling woman with curly red hair standing between Israeli and US flags. She had worked in the public diplomacy section at the embassy in Washington since 2023. Milgrim was a leading choir member at her school near Kansas City and earned a degree in environmental science from the University of Kansas. She also attended a American University in Washington and a UN University for Peace program. She had a master's degree in international studies and sustainable global development, according to her father Robert. The Milgrim family were not aware of the upcoming proposal. Her father said the Israeli ambassador told them about it when he telephoned Wednesday night to inform them of the young couple's death. Milgrim's mother Nancy told The New York Times she had been planning to fly to Washington on Sunday to look after her daughter's dog. She had seen alerts on her phone about the shooting in Washington, and tracked her daughter to the Capital Jewish Museum before the ambassador's call. "I pretty much already knew," the father told The New York Times. After university Milgrim spent a year in Israel working with the Tech2Peace group aimed at bringing together young Israelis and Palestinians for seminars on peacemaking and tech training. On LinkedIn, she said she had carried out a study "on the role of friendships in the Israeli-Palestinian peacebuilding process." "She was doing what she loved, she was doing good," her father told US media.
France 24
23-05-2025
- France 24
Israel embassy staffers slain in Washington had planned to marry
As their deaths late Wednesday intensify the international spotlight on the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza, here is what we know about the two Israeli embassy staffers shot dead after attending a networking event for young professionals. Yaron Lischinsky The 30-year-old had worked as a researcher at the Israeli embassy in Washington since 2022. He was born in Nuremburg, Germany and moved to Israel at the age of 16 and had dual nationality. Lischinsky studied at Reichman University in Tel Aviv and Hebrew University in Jerusalem. Ron Prosor, the Israeli ambassador in Berlin, described Lischinsky as a "brilliant" and "curious" student when he taught him at Reichman. Nissim Otmazgin, a humanities professor at Hebrew University, said the slain man had dreamed of becoming a diplomat. Lischinsky spoke fluent German, according to the German-Israeli Friendship Society. Volker Beck, the society president, said Lischinsky's "interest in German-Israeli relations and ways to achieve peaceful coexistence in the Middle East brightened the environment around him." He met Sarah Milgrim when she started working at the Israeli mission. According to Yechiel Leiter, Israel's ambassador in Washington, Lischinsky had bought a ring. The couple planned to fly to Jerusalem on Sunday to meet his family and Lischinsky was to propose there next week. Sarah Milgrim The LinkedIn photo of 26-year-old Sarah Milgrim showed a smiling woman with curly red hair standing between Israeli and US flags. She had worked in the public diplomacy section at the embassy in Washington since 2023. Milgrim was a leading choir member at her school near Kansas City and earned a degree in environmental science from the University of Kansas. She also attended a American University in Washington and a UN University for Peace program. She had a master's degree in international studies and sustainable global development, according to her father Robert. The Milgrim family were not aware of the upcoming proposal. Her father said the Israeli ambassador told them about it when he telephoned Wednesday night to inform them of the young couple's death. Milgrim's mother Nancy told The New York Times she had been planning to fly to Washington on Sunday to look after her daughter's dog. She had seen alerts on her phone about the shooting in Washington, and tracked her daughter to the Capital Jewish Museum before the ambassador's call. "I pretty much already knew," the father told The New York Times. After university Milgrim spent a year in Israel working with the Tech2Peace group aimed at bringing together young Israelis and Palestinians for seminars on peacemaking and tech training. On LinkedIn, she said she had carried out a study "on the role of friendships in the Israeli-Palestinian peacebuilding process."
Yahoo
22-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
One of killed Israeli embassy workers had German nationality
One of the two employees at the Israeli embassy in Washington who was killed on Wednesday had German nationality, German diplomatic sources said. The male victim had a German passport, the sources told dpa on Thursday. The German-Israeli Society (DIG) in Berlin said that the man had partly grown up in the southern state of Bavaria and spoke fluent German. He was a founding member of a related youth forum, which focussed on bringing together young people from Germany and Israel, the DIG said. In 2022, he took up a position at the Israeli embassy in Washington. The president of the DIG, Volker Beck, said the embassy employee was remembered as an "open-minded, intelligent and deeply committed person whose interest in German-Israeli relations and ways to achieve peaceful coexistence in the Middle East radiated to his entire environment." The man was one of two people who were shot dead near the Capital Jewish Museum. Israeli officials described the man and woman as a young couple about to get engaged. A suspect has been detained. He is said to have chanted the pro-Palestinian slogan "free Palestine" after he was taken into custody.
