Nicaragua sues in The Hague
Germany in court: allegations of genocide are unfounded
Tania von Uslar-Gleichen (l.) and Christian J. Tams, member of the German legal team. photo
© Patrick Post/AP/dpa
Germany is defending itself before the International Court of Justice against allegations made by Nicaragua of complicity in the genocide in the Gaza Strip. How does the UN court decide?
Germany is violating neither the Genocide Convention nor international humanitarian law. “Germany’s actions in this conflict are firmly rooted in international law,” said the Federal Foreign Office Commissioner for International Law.
“Populist game on the backs of innocent people”
The chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee in the Bundestag, Michael Roth, has sharply rejected Nicaragua’s accusation of German complicity in genocide in the Gaza Strip.
“This is a very, very populist game, unfortunately on the backs of innocent people,” said the SPD politician on the RTL/ntv Frühstart. “It’s frustrating that an authoritarian regime like Nicaragua is accusing a democracy like Germany because we rush to help an attacked state.”
“I always want to remind you that aggression does not come from Israel, but from Hamas terrorists,” emphasized Roth. “And Israel is defending itself against this terrorism. And it is not Israel’s goal to kill Palestinians because they are Palestinians, but rather to destroy the infrastructure of terror. And this terror is still an acute danger to that Israel’s right to exist.”
Aiding and abetting genocide by supplying weapons to Israel
Nicaragua accuses Germany before the highest UN court of aiding and abetting genocide in the Gaza Strip by supplying weapons to Israel. Germany, on the other hand, accuses Nicaragua of having provided false information. Germany largely supplies general armaments and not weapons that can be used directly in combat operations. Since October 2023, only four licenses for weapons have been issued, including ammunition for training purposes and a submarine. All arms exports to Israel would also be carefully examined by German authorities.
It’s the last day of the hearing. The UN’s 16 highest judges will then discuss an urgent application from Nicaragua. Nicaragua is demanding, among other things, an immediate stop to arms deliveries to Israel and the resumption of contributions to the UN Palestinian relief agency UNRWA in the Gaza Strip. A decision from the court is expected in about two weeks.
After the massacres by the Islamist Hamas and other extremist organizations on October 7th, Germany affirmed Israel’s right to self-defense, von Uslar-Gleichen argued before the court. At the same time, Germany is also committed to the rights and protection of the civilian population in the Gaza Strip.