Germany slams comments by Israeli minister on starvation in Gaza

The German Foreign Office has condemned statements by Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich in which he deplored aid for Palestinians in the Gaza Strip and described starvation as morally justified, reported dpa.

"These are completely unacceptable and outrageous statements by the Israeli Finance Minister. We reject them in the strongest possible terms," said a spokesman for the Foreign Office in Berlin.

"It is an imperative of humanity and a basic principle of international humanitarian law that civilians must be protected in war and must have access to water and food," the spokesman added.

According to Israeli media reports, Smotrich described a blockade of aid supplies for Gaza until all hostages seized in the October 7 attacks by the Palestinian militant group Hamas are released as moral and justified.

Smotrich said the blockade would be justified even if it entailed the starvation of two million people in Gaza, but argued that the international community would not allow such a measure.

The German Foreign Office spokesman said the comments would be "followed very closely" by international rights courts in The Hague, where Israel has faced allegations of genocide.

Back in May, the chief prosecutor at the International Criminal Court, Karim Khan, said he was requesting arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his Defence Minister Yoav Gallant for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.

Prosecutor Karim Khan said he is requesting warrants for Netanyahu and his Defence Minister Yoav Gallant for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity.