German lawyers ask court to block ship they say is delivering arms to Israel’s Elbit

European Legal Support Center files suit in name of three Gazans, claiming MV Kathrin’s cargo is en route to defense contractor and could be used for alleged war crimes in Strip

Smoke rises over Beit Lahiya, adjacent to Jabaliya in the northern Gaza Strip on October 26, 2024 (Photo by AFP)
Smoke rises over Beit Lahiya, adjacent to Jabaliya in the northern Gaza Strip on October 26, 2024 (Photo by AFP)

BERLIN – Human rights lawyers have filed a court appeal in Berlin seeking to block a 150-metric-ton shipment of military-grade explosives aboard German cargo ship MV Kathrin which they say is to be delivered to Israel’s biggest defense contractor.

The European Legal Support Center (ELSC) said on Wednesday the action was filed on behalf of three Palestinians from Gaza, arguing that the shipment of primarily RDX explosives could be used in munitions for Israel’s war against the Hamas terror group in the Gaza Strip, potentially contributing to alleged war crimes, which Israel strenuously denies.

Germany-based Lubeca Marine, which owns the MV Kathrin, said the ship “was never scheduled to make any port calls in Israel” and had recently discharged its cargo in Bar, Montenegro.

The company declined to disclose details of the cargo for contractual reasons, but said it complied fully with all international and EU regulations, ensuring necessary permits are obtained before any operations.

The ELSC said the RDX shipment was destined for Israeli Military Industries, a division of Elbit Systems, Israel’s largest defense contractor. Elbit Systems declined to comment.

“We never claimed that the Kathrin was bound for Israel (itself), it’s the cargo which is bound for Elbit Systems,” ELSC lawyer Ahmed Abed told Reuters with respect to the group’s appeal filed at Berlin’s Administrative Court. “The company ignored all the warnings.”

Illustrative — Activists from the Extinction Rebellion North and Palestine Action groups protest at the gates of the Elbit Ferranti factory in waterhead, Oldham in north-west England on February 1, 2021. (Photo by Paul ELLIS / AFP)

LSEG data and vessel-tracking website Marine Traffic indicated that the MV Kathrin had docked in the major Egyptian Mediterranean port of Alexandria on Monday and was last seen there.

According to the port of Alexandria’s website, the ship, which it identified as German, unloaded military equipment in Alexandria and was set to depart on November 5.

The Egyptian foreign ministry did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.

The MV Kathrin has been denied entry at several African and Mediterranean ports, including in Angola, Slovenia, Montenegro, and Malta, according to the ELSC. It said Portuguese authorities recently required the ship to switch from a Portuguese flag to a German flag before it could continue.

In August, Namibian authorities blocked the vessel, which departed from Vietnam’s port of Haiphong, from entering its main harbor, Amnesty International has reported.

Germany’s economy ministry, named in the case because the ship is German-owned and flagged, said it had received letters from lawyers on the matter but declined to comment on them.

The ministry said the MV Kathrin shipment did not constitute an export from Germany, as the explosives were neither loaded nor dispatched from German territory. It said there was no legal basis for requiring an export license under German law.

The war in Gaza began on October 7, 2023, when thousands of Hamas-led terrorists invaded southern Israel, killing some 1,200 people and taking 251 hostages.

Israel denies accusations it has committed war crimes in its campaign, stressing that Hamas uses Gaza’s civilians as human shields, fighting from civilian areas including homes, hospitals, schools, and mosques.

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