German foreign minister to visit Israel, West Bank and Lebanon next week

Spokesperson says ‘particularly tense and dangerous situation’ on Israel’s northern border with Lebanon will be discussed, as well as war in Gaza and situation in the West Bank

German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock delivers a statement to the media prior to the start of a European Foreign Affairs Council meeting in Brussels on May 27, 2024. (François Walschaerts/AFP)
German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock delivers a statement to the media prior to the start of a European Foreign Affairs Council meeting in Brussels on May 27, 2024. (François Walschaerts/AFP)

German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock will visit the Middle East next week, Berlin said Friday.

Baerbock will travel to Israel on Monday immediately after a meeting of European Union foreign ministers in Luxembourg, a German foreign ministry spokeswoman said.

On arrival in Israel, Baerbock — who has visited the region several times since the start of the war amid support for Israel from Berlin — will give a speech at the Herzliya Security Conference.

On Tuesday, she will hold talks with Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Mohammad Mustafa in Ramallah. She will also meet with Foreign Minister Israel Katz in Jerusalem.

Baerbock will then travel to Lebanon for talks with officials in Beirut, including the migration minister.

The meetings come amid rising international concern over fighting between Israel and the Lebanon-based Hezbollah terror group, which has carried out near-daily attacks on northern Israel since October 8.

Foreign Minister Israel Katz (r) meets with his German counterpart Annalena Baerbock in Jerusalem on April 17, 2024 (Sivan Shahor/GPO)

The minister’s discussions with officials will focus on “the war in Gaza and the continuing catastrophic humanitarian situation” as well as “the question of what a future could look like that allows Israelis and Palestinians to live together in safety,” the ministry spokeswoman said.

“In the Palestinian territories, the situation in the West Bank will also be a focus, as will the reform efforts of the Palestinian Authority,” the spokeswoman said.

“The particularly tense and dangerous situation on the border between Israel and Lebanon,” would also be discussed on the trip.

In April, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reportedly bickered with Baerbock regarding the humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip, with the premier telling her, “We’re not like the Nazis.”

The conversation apparently turned contentious when Baerbock asserted that Israel was “driving Gaza toward famine.”

In the exchange reported by Channel 13, Baerbock offered to show Netanyahu and Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer “photos of hungry [Gazan] children on my phone.” Netanyahu responded to the gesture, telling the German official, “Come and see the pictures of the markets in Gaza, the beaches in Gaza, there’s no famine there.”

Germany said it complained to Netanyahu’s staff after what it described as a “distorted” account of a row was leaked to the press.

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