German Chancellor Friedrich Merz has criticised Israel's plans to take control of Gaza and hold up to 75% of the Strip, stating he "no longer understands" the end goal.
"The Israeli government must not do anything that even its best friends are no longer willing to accept," said Merz at the WDR Europaforum in Berlin on Monday.
"What the Israeli army is now doing in the Gaza Strip, I frankly no longer understand with what goal," he added.
The German chancellor also commented on the fact that Palestinians in the Strip are dependent on international aid deliveries, which Israel had blocked until recently with the argument that Hamas would benefit from them.
"To cause such suffering to the civilian population, as has increasingly been the case in recent days, can no longer be justified by the fight against Hamas terrorism," Merz said.
Merz's words point to a shift in tone in another ally of Israel, after the leaders of France, the United Kingdom and Canada last week condemned what they called Israel’s "egregious" military actions in Gaza and warned that they would take "concrete actions" if Netanyahu didn't change course, particularly regarding humanitarian aid.
On Friday, Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu accused the trio of being on the "wrong side of history" and siding with Hamas after they all called for an end to Israel’s military operation in Gaza and restrictions on the delivery of humanitarian aid.
"When mass murderers, rapists, baby killers and kidnappers thank you, you're on the wrong side of justice, you're on the wrong side of humanity and you're on the wrong side of history," he said in remarks on Friday, name-checking Emmanuel Macron, Keir Starmer and Mark Carney.
"Now, these leaders may think that they're advancing peace, they’re not. They're emboldening Hamas to continue fighting forever and they give them hope to establish a second Palestinian state from which Hamas will again seek to destroy the Jewish state - and mind you, it's not going to be a state free of Hamas."
After an almost three-month blockade on all aid entering the Strip, dozens of trucks were allowed to enter Gaza again last week, but the UN said that the amount entering was a "drop in the ocean" compared to what was needed.
The Israel Defence Forces (IDF) launched a renewed offensive on Hamas in Gaza, codenamed Operation Gideon's Chariots, in mid-May.
The major ground offensive in northern and southern Gaza is backed by the Israeli air force and aims to expand "operational control" over the Strip and free the remaining hostages still being held by Hamas.
