Germany’s Merz Discusses Gaza in Call with Israel’s Netanyahu  

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz attends a press conference, in Brussels, Belgium, May 9 2025. (Reuters)
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz attends a press conference, in Brussels, Belgium, May 9 2025. (Reuters)
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Germany’s Merz Discusses Gaza in Call with Israel’s Netanyahu  

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz attends a press conference, in Brussels, Belgium, May 9 2025. (Reuters)
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz attends a press conference, in Brussels, Belgium, May 9 2025. (Reuters)

Germany's new Chancellor Friedrich Merz held his first call in office with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, discussing the Gaza war and Middle East tensions, Berlin said Friday.  

In the call on Thursday, 80 years after the end of World War II, Merz "reiterated that the existence and security of Israel are a part of German raison d'etat", declaring them core principle of the German state, said a statement.  

Germany has long been a strong support of Israel as it seeks to atone for the Holocaust, and conservative Merz is expected to continue this tradition.  

Merz repeated Germany's condemnation "in the strongest terms" of Hamas's "brutal terror attack" of October 7, 2023 and expressed concern for the fate of the remaining Israeli hostages in Gaza as well as "the hope that negotiations for a ceasefire would soon get under way".

He also mentioned the "humanitarian crisis" in Gaza, where an Israeli blockade has led UN agencies and aid groups to warn of dwindling supplies of everything from fuel to medicine to the territory of 2.4 million Palestinians.  

Israel denies a humanitarian crisis is unfolding and has vowed to further ramp up pressure on Hamas.  

The Israeli military has already levelled most of the territory's buildings following the group's unprecedented attack on Israel.

In a trip to Paris on Wednesday, Merz said that while "Israel has a legitimate interest in pushing back Hamas's terror, it also has a humanitarian obligation to the population in Gaza".  

He added that Israel "must fulfil this responsibility more fully than it has been doing in recent days".  

New German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul is expected to visit Israel this weekend to discuss the ongoing conflict.  

Next Monday, Israeli President Isaac Herzog is set to visit Berlin to mark the 60th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries.  

His German counterpart Frank-Walter Steinmeier will visit Israel directly afterwards.  

The official readout of the call between Merz and Netanyahu said they also discussed "the situation in Syria", without giving further details.

Israel has carried out hundreds of strikes on Syria since the ousting of President Bashar al-Assad in December.



One in 10 Children Screened in UNRWA Clinics are Malnourished

Palestinians wait to receive food from a charity kitchen, amid a hunger crisis, in Gaza City, July 14, 2025. REUTERS/Mahmoud Issa
Palestinians wait to receive food from a charity kitchen, amid a hunger crisis, in Gaza City, July 14, 2025. REUTERS/Mahmoud Issa
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One in 10 Children Screened in UNRWA Clinics are Malnourished

Palestinians wait to receive food from a charity kitchen, amid a hunger crisis, in Gaza City, July 14, 2025. REUTERS/Mahmoud Issa
Palestinians wait to receive food from a charity kitchen, amid a hunger crisis, in Gaza City, July 14, 2025. REUTERS/Mahmoud Issa

One in 10 children screened in clinics run by the United Nations refugee agency in Gaza since 2024 has been malnourished, the agency said on Tuesday.

"Our health teams are confirming that malnutrition rates are increasing in Gaza, especially since the siege was tightened more than four months ago on the second of March," UNRWA's Director of Communications, Juliette Touma, told reporters in Geneva via a video link from Amman, Jordan.

Since January 2024, UNRWA said it had screened more than 240,000 boys and girls under the age of five in its clinics, adding that before the war, acute malnutrition was rarely seen in the Gaza Strip.

"One nurse that we spoke to told us that in the past, he only saw these cases of malnutrition in textbooks and documentaries," Reuters quoted Touma as saying.

"Medicine, nutrition supplies, hygiene material, fuel are all rapidly running out," Touma said.

On May 19, Israel lifted an 11-week aid blockade on Gaza, allowing limited UN deliveries to resume. However, UNRWA continues to be banned from bringing aid into the enclave.

Israel and the United States have accused Palestinian militant group Hamas of stealing from UN-led aid operations - which Hamas denies. They have instead set up the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, using private US security and logistics firms to transport aid to distribution hubs, which the UN has refused to work with.

On Monday, UNICEF said that last month more than 5,800 children were diagnosed with malnutrition in Gaza, including more than 1,000 children with severe, acute malnutrition. It said it was an increase for the fourth month in a row.