Germany withdraws from ICJ support role for Israel amid accusations of complicity in war crimes

The German government has withdrawn its support for Israel in the ongoing “genocide” case at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) after being accused of aiding Israel’s alleged war crimes. Israel has categorically rejected the genocide allegation.

“We are now ourselves part of a contentious case before the ICJ and have therefore decided not to make use of this option,” Germany's foreign ministry spokesperson, Josef Hinterseher, stated on Wednesday.

Germany and Israel have close relations, with Berlin emerging as a key supporter of the Jewish state within the European Union. In January 2024, Germany pledged to back Israel in the ICJ genocide case initiated by South Africa, rejecting the accusation as “baseless” and describing it as a “political instrumentalization” of the 1948 Genocide Convention established after the Holocaust.

Germany emphasized at the time that it was the terrorist organization Hamas that acted with genocidal intent in carrying out the Oct. 7 attack on southern Israel, killing 1,200 Israelis – the deadliest single day of Jewish deaths since the Holocaust. The German government has also largely backed Israel, stressing that the Jewish state is exercising its legitimate right of self-defense against enemies that openly call for its destruction.

Although Germany’s stance on the ICJ case remains unchanged, Berlin is now focusing its legal efforts on defending against accusations that it aided Israel’s alleged genocide, likely linked to its position as Israel’s second-largest arms supplier after the United States.

The shift follows Nicaragua’s April 2024 accusation that Berlin assisted Israel in the alleged “genocide” in Gaza.

“We categorically reject Nicaragua’s allegations against Germany,” Hinterseher affirmed on Wednesday. “All other matters will have to be clarified before the court, and we do not wish to comment further,” the German foreign ministry spokesperson added.

Nicaragua also called on Germany to halt its arms exports to Israel and to resume funding for the UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA), which has faced scrutiny over alleged staff ties to Hamas and concerns about antisemitic content. Germany’s exports to Israel are primarily naval platforms, which have played a limited role in the ongoing war in Gaza.

The military relationship between Germany and Israel is not one-sided.

In January, Germany signed a $3.1 billion deal with Israel Aerospace Industries for the expanded delivery of the Israeli-made Arrow 3 defense system. The total agreement amounts to around $US6 billion – to date, the largest agreement in Israel's defense history.

Meanwhile, last week, the United States submitted its legal arguments at the ICJ in support of Israel, stating that the “genocide” claim was part of a broader campaign to delegitimize the State of Israel and the Jewish people and to justify or encourage terrorism against them.”

Earlier this month, Paraguay became the first country to submit its support for Israel at the World Court.

By contrast, Iceland and the Netherlands recently joined a growing number of countries that have submitted critical statements regarding Israel in the ongoing debate over the interpretation of the Genocide Convention. The issue of whether Israel’s actions in Gaza meet the legal definition of genocide remains contested.

Israel says its military has taken steps to minimize civilian casualties while targeting Hamas, which it accuses of operating within civilian areas such as hospitals, schools and residential buildings.