Majority of Germans want more pressure on Israel over Gaza: Poll

BERLIN

A majority of Germans want their government to apply more pressure on Israel regarding its actions in the Gaza Strip, according to a new poll released late Thursday.

The DeutschlandTrend survey, commissioned by public broadcaster ARD, found that 66% of participants agreed with the statement that "the German government should put more pressure on the Israeli government to change its stance on the Gaza Strip."

Only 24% of respondents disagreed with this position.

The poll also revealed that 62% of Germans reject the notion that "Germany bears a greater responsibility than other countries for the protection of Israel due to its historical past," with just 31% supporting this traditional stance.

The representative survey was conducted by the infratest dimap polling institute between Aug. 4 and 6, interviewing 1,321 Germans who represent the country's population.

Growing public pressure on the German government—fueled by reports of children starving in Gaza—prompted Chancellor Merz to announce the partial suspension of arms exports to Israel on Friday.

The conservative leader said in a statement that the government will not authorize any exports of military equipment that could be used in the Gaza Strip, in response to the Israeli government’s recent decision to expand its military offensive and occupy Gaza City.

For months, Merz rejected calls from opposition lawmakers to halt arms exports to Israel and dismissed appeals from EU members to suspend a trade agreement with Tel Aviv, even as Israel's military campaign and blockade in Gaza resulted in over 61,000 casualties, with women and children making up nearly half of the victims.