Germany has been calling for a humanitarian pause in Gaza instead of a permanent ceasefire since the start of the war.

Qatar’s Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani and German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier met in Doha on Wednesday, where they discussed bilateral relations and the developments in Gaza, the Amiri Diwan said in a statement.

“The Amir stressed the importance of reaching a permanent ceasefire, protecting civilians, and delivering humanitarian aid for the people of the Gaza Strip, and finding solutions that guarantee the establishment of two states in accordance with international and UN resolutions,” the statement added.

In a post on X, Sheikh Tamim said the discussions with the German leader touched on “the necessity of resuming the path of comprehensive peace in the Middle East in a way that guarantees the establishment of an independent Palestinian state.”

The German president’s visit to Qatar came after stopping in Israel on Monday, where he met Israeli President Isaac Herzog and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Steinmeier reiterated his support for Israel during his meetings in Tel Aviv while accusing Hamas of starting “a war in the entire region.”

“Hamas started a war in the entire region, and no one can condemn Israel for defending itself and fighting against terrorism,” he said in a statement to the media in Tel Aviv and recorded by  the Israeli foreign ministry.

Currently, Israel and Hamas are on day six of a six-day humanitarian truce mediated by Qatar and Egypt.

The truce initially came into effect on Friday 7:00 AM Gaza local time on November 24, and stipulated the release of more than 50 Israeli and foreign captives from Hamas in Gaza in exchange for the release of 150 Palestinian women and children from Israeli prisons.

Extensive discussions between Qatar, Egypt and the United States led to the extension of the truce on Monday, just hours after it was due to expire on Tuesday.

Israeli occupation forces have killed at least 20,031 Palestinians, including 8,176 children, since the start of the genocide, according to figures by Euro-Med. 

The figures by the NGO are being widely cited as Gaza’s collapsed health sector stopped keeping track of the total toll after the ground invasion of Al-Shifa Hospital on November 18.

Israel has used the Hamas operation of October 7 as the pretext for the genocide in Gaza.

Known as “Al Aqsa Flood”, the operation saw the Al-Qassam Brigades—Hamas’ armed wing—infiltrate the occupied territories through air, land and sea while returning to Gaza with at least 240 captives. 

Germany’s stance on Israeli aggression

Germany is among Israel’s staunchest Western allies that have, despite wide criticisms, championed Israel’s bombardment of Gaza as part of its “right to defend itself.”

On October 8, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz stressed that Israel’s security “is Germany’s reason of state.” Scholz was also the first Western official to visit Israel after the Hamas operation on October 17 in solidarity with Israel.

The term “reason of state” refers to Germany’s commitment to Israel’s safety and security out of historical responsibility for the Holocaust under Nazi Germany between 1933 and 1945. The Holocaust, the mass murder of the Jews, was carried out under Adolf Hitler’s dictatorship over the perception of Jews as the “racial” enemy.

“Since the Holocaust, never has so many Jews been murdered in one day as October 7. Israel is in a war against Hamas – but this is also a war for the existence of Israel and its right to defend itself and ensure its existence,” Germany’s leader said during his most recent meeting with the Israeli president on November 26.

Germany has been calling for a humanitarian pause in Gaza instead of a permanent ceasefire since the start of the war.

In an interview with Germany’s Deutsche Welles on November 20, German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock rejected calls for a ceasefire.

“That would mean Israel would no longer be able to defend itself amid the ongoing barrage of missiles. Everyday, Hamas makes it clear that it wants to wipe Israel off the map. That means they want to annihilate Israel,” Baerbock said.

Faeser further accused the Samidoun of “antisemitism and absolute lack of regard for human life.”

On November 14, Germany’s parliament proposed a draft law on the “on termination of residence and the prevention of the naturalisation of anti-Semitic foreigners.” The second page of the bill stated that one must not deny “Israel’s right to exist” in order to acquire citizenship.

Since the start of the war on Gaza, German authorities have repeatedly cracked down on pro-Palestine protests, a matter that has been a concern by activists and rights organisations including Amnesty International.

Esther Major, Amnesty International’s Deputy Director for Research in Europe, said on October 30, that authorities in Germany “banned the vast majority of protests for Palestinian rights, and on Tuesday France’s government was told by the highest administrative court that it could not impose a blanket ban on all demonstrations in support of Palestinians.” 

On November 2, Germany Minister of Interior Nancy Faeser banned Hamas and Palestinian Solidarity Network Samidoun “from all activity” in the country.

“I banned all activity in Germany by HAMAS, a terrorist organisation whose aim is to destroy the State of Israel. Samidoun is an international network which disseminates anti-Israel and anti-Jewish propaganda while claiming to promote solidarity with prisoners in different countries,” Faeser said in a statement at the time.