BERLIN: German Chancellor Friedrich Merz will make his first official visit to Israel in December at a time of heightened tensions in the region, the German government said on Friday.
The German leader will arrive in Israel on December 6 and meet with Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and visit the Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial on December 7.
“In addition to bilateral relations, the continued stabilization of the Gaza ceasefire and other international issues will be at the center of discussions,” said deputy spokesperson Steffen Meyer.
The announcement comes days after Berlin decided to lift a partial arms embargo on Israel, imposed in August as a reaction to an escalation in its military offensive in Gaza.
Germany has been one of Israel’s staunchest supporters as it seeks to atone for the legacy of the Holocaust.
But in recent months, Merz has occasionally delivered sharp critiques of Israeli policy as German public opinion turns against Israel’s actions.
Germany, France, Italy, and the UK on Thursday called for an end to what they called increasing “settler violence against Palestinian civilians” in the occupied West Bank, a day after Israel’s military launched a new operation against Palestinian armed groups there.
The Israeli military carried out a fresh series of strikes against Hezbollah in southern Lebanon on Thursday, exactly a year into a ceasefire with the militant group.
Israeli forces on Friday killed 13 people in southern Syria in an operation condemned by Damascus as a “war crime.”
When asked about a possible visit to Germany by Netanyahu, who faces an ICC arrest warrant for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza, Meyer said it was “not a topic at the moment.”