NGOs launch petition calling on Germany to pressure Israel for Gaza cease-fire

BERLIN

Germany’s peace movements and rights groups have launched an online petition calling on the government to pressure Israel for an immediate cease-fire and unrestricted humanitarian access to Gaza.

The groups, including peace movement Pax Christi, Oxfam, and CARE Germany, have called on Berlin to stop its arms exports to Israel, take a firmer stand for an immediate cease-fire, and insist on the protection of Palestinian civilians.

“We demand that the German government exerts considerably more pressure on Israel to immediately end the illegal blockade and allow unhindered access for humanitarian aid,” the groups said in their petition, adding that further steps must be taken to stop Israeli settler violence and the construction of illegal settlements in the occupied territories.

The International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War, Medico International, Jewish-Palestinian Dialogue Group, and Jewish Voice for a Just Peace in the Middle East are among the groups that declared their support for the online petition.

Germany has been a staunch ally of Israel, and government officials have repeatedly said the country bears special responsibility for Israel’s security due to its Nazi past.

But the government has come under growing pressure in recent months due to the Israeli military’s disproportionate and indiscriminate use of force in Gaza, killing over 40,000 Palestinians, including more than 16,000 children and 11,000 women.

In a recent poll by public broadcaster ARD, 57% of Germans said Israel’s military actions in Gaza have “gone too far,” and 68% opposed providing military support for Israel. Only 21% voiced support for Israel.

Israel has continued its brutal offensive on Gaza since an Oct. 7, 2023 attack by Hamas, despite growing calls for an immediate cease-fire from the international community.

More than 10 months into the conflict, vast tracts of Gaza lie in ruins amid a crippling blockade of food, clean water, and medicine. Its actions in the blockaded enclave also triggered a genocide case at the International Court of Justice.