Germany Accuses Nicaragua of "Denying" Israel's Right to Exist

Germany rejected the Nicaraguan accusation of its alleged “complicity” in a “plausible genocide” in Gaza. It assured that Managua “denies” Israel's right “to exist” in its request to the International Court of Justice (ICJ), in which Nicaragua calls for the end of German military and political assistance to the Israeli government.

Speaking at the ICJ on Tuesday, April 9, 2024, Germany's Director General for Legal Affairs, Tania von Uslar-Gleichen, referred to a speech by Chancellor Olaf Scholz, in which he spoke of Berlin being “guided” by its “responsibility stemming from the Holocaust” and its “permanent duty to defend the existence and security of the State of Israel.”

“This responsibility must continue to guide us because Israel's right to exist continues to be denied. Indeed, it is denied in Nicaragua's application, in the section devoted to the Hamas massacre of October 7. According to Nicaragua, these attacks were directed against 'settlements located in the occupied Palestinian territories,'” Uslar-Gleichen explained.

In the sixth paragraph of the introduction to its request, Managua states that “Palestinian paramilitary forces of Hamas attacked Israeli settlements located in the occupied Palestinian territories of Sderot, Kfar Azza, Nir Oz, and Be'eri.”

Germany accuses Nicaragua of adopting “a unilateral view”

Berlin stressed that it “will not tolerate this” and warned that the international community founded the Israeli state as “a haven for the Jewish people” and its right to exist is “internationally recognized.”

“Germany firmly rejects this notion. (...) These attacks targeted communities located within Israel's borders. Not in Gaza, but in the State of Israel,” the German diplomat replied.

She further stressed that the German government has been “doing everything possible to live up to its responsibility to the Israeli and Palestinian peoples” and accused Nicaragua of “taking a one-sided view” of the conflict.

“Germany has learned from its past. A past that includes responsibility for one of the most terrible crimes in the history of humanity, the Shoah (Hebrew term for Holocaust),” Uslar-Gleichen added.

Germany “committed” to a two-state solution

He also assured that Berlin “remains committed” to a two-state solution as “the only path to lasting peace” in the region and explained that it has for decades provided “significant support” to Palestinians living in the Israeli-occupied territories.

In addition, she cited several statements by senior German officials, including by German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock, calling the suffering of the Palestinians “indescribable” and life in Gaza “hell.”

“These quotations prove that Germany is fulfilling its obligations to ensure respect for international humanitarian law,” she said.

The ICJ held hearings Monday and Tuesday on the need to issue interim measures against Germany as part of a proceeding initiated by Nicaragua in March 2024, in which it accused Berlin of “complicity in the genocide” in Gaza and demanded it “suspend” as a matter of “extreme urgency” its political, financial and military support for Israel.

This article was published in Spanish in Confidencial and translated by our staff To get the most relevant news from our English coverage delivered straight to your inbox, subscribe to The Dispatch.