Berlin, Germany – Late last week, German lawyers filed a lawsuit against some of the country’s top politicians, including Chancellor Olaf Scholz, accusing them of “complicity” in the Gaza Strip.
The case of German Palestinians who have family in the besieged Gaza Strip centers on the question of alleged complicity, given Germany’s continued support for Israel despite the incredibly high number of civilian deaths in the middle incessant bombings.
Nearly 30,000 Palestinians have been killed by Israel since October 7, in a campaign that followed an attack in southern Israel that killed 1,139 people by Hamas, the group that rules Gaza.
“We, the living, must remember the dead in Gaza, tell their stories and fight for justice,” Nora Ragab, a migration researcher and one of the German Palestinians involved in the case, said in a statement.
Ragad’s motivations for getting involved are both political and personal.
“My aunt and uncle were over 70, so like many elderly people in northern Gaza, they decided to stay after the evacuation orders were given,” she told Tel Aviv Tribune.
When an Israeli bulldozer arrived one day in November to demolish the newly built house next door, Ragab’s uncle came out to ask the soldiers not to destroy the house because peaceful civilians lived there.
“The neighbors saw everything,” she says. “They told us he came out with his hands in the air. But the soldiers still shot him. When my aunt tried to bring him back into the house, they shot him too.
Ragab’s cousins returned home on November 24 to watch over their parents during a break in the fighting. They found them dead in the courtyard. The couple were kissing. Cousins counted 60 gunshot wounds.
“It is my responsibility to ensure that the Germans do not look away,” Ragab said.
This legal action is supported by a number of civil society organizations, including the European Legal Support Center, the Palestinian Institute for Public Diplomacy and UK-based Law for Palestine.
Lawyers have filed suit against senior politicians who sit on Germany’s Federal Security Council after the interim ruling in January by the United Nations’ highest court, the International Court of Justice (ICJ).
The ICJ said it was “plausible” that Israeli actions in Gaza could constitute genocide.
Germany’s Federal Security Council directs national security policy and authorizes arms exports. In addition to Scholz, Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock, Economics Minister Robert Habeck, Finance Minister Christian Lindner and others are also accused.
For Ragad, making this accusation against German politicians was important.
“Of course it won’t bring them back,” she said. “But we should do everything to try to stop this violence. Germany actually has a special responsibility because of its history. This is why it must take the slightest accusation of genocide very seriously, investigate it and do everything possible to prevent and punish it.”
Declarations, aid and weapons
The accusations revolve around three main points, explained Nadija Samour, the German lawyer who filed the complaint with the country’s federal prosecutor.
First, statements of support for Israel made by German government officials.
Second, the withdrawal of German funding from the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East, or UNRWA, the main provider of aid to Gaza.
The third point concerns German arms exports to Israel.
These increased from 32 million euros ($35 million) in 2022 to 303 million euros ($328 million) last year.
Most of this increase was approved by the German government after October 7. Currently, German politicians are considering sending more tank shells to Israel.
Samour said if the federal prosecutor thinks the case has weight, he will investigate the charges. If they don’t, they need to explain why, she said.
Since the ICJ verdict, similar legal proceedings have been launched elsewhere.
In the United States, the campaign against American President Joe Biden was unsuccessful. Another successful project in the Netherlands blocked exports of F-35 fighter jet parts to Israel. Both cases are under appeal.
So, can the German case succeed? Local law experts say this is unlikely.
“I don’t think this legal path will succeed,” said Stefan Talmon, professor of international law at the University of Bonn. “The law on this subject is far too complicated.”
The ICJ’s decision is only a provisional decision, so the threshold of proof is not as high, Talmon explained.
“It therefore seems incredibly difficult to me to establish that (German politicians) are responsible for aiding and abetting an act of genocide in the Palestinian territories,” he told Tel Aviv Tribune.
There have been convictions of this type in the past in Germany, but they involved individuals directly assisting an offender, Talmon noted.
Kai Ambos, professor of international criminal law at the University of Göttingen, agrees.
“We need a primary crime to determine secondary liability,” he wrote in an emailed interview. Although it cannot be completely ruled out, it is “unlikely that the (federal prosecutor) will open a formal investigation,” he said.
It is not uncommon for German politicians to be accused in this way.
During her term in office, former Chancellor Angela Merkel faced 407 charges, including complicity in murder.
Between 2021 and 2023, 55 charges have been filed against Scholz. The federal prosecutor has so far refused to open an investigation into them.
” Right “
But the charges filed last week are more of a political move, Talmon suggested, part of what international lawyers call “the legal war.”
“It’s when one party – often one that is militarily disadvantaged – uses the law to its advantage,” he said. “It’s also a way to raise awareness, get media attention and show your own political base that you’re doing something.”
The South African case against Israel before the ICJ is an example. Recent accusations have also been made by Ukraine against Russia.
“Yet, as they say, something always sticks,” Talmon continued. “In a society like Germany, this can help raise awareness that the world is not as black and white as it is often portrayed here. »
The lawyers involved acknowledge the difficult political landscape in Germany, where pro-Palestinian protests were at one point banned.
They hope for an investigation but if that does not happen, they are also happy to lobby politicians over the possible delivery of additional tank shells to Israel, a deal that has not yet been finalized.
A German government spokesperson told Tel Aviv Tribune that Germany believes Israel has the right to defend itself but must also respect international humanitarian law.
“The German government does not turn a blind eye to the enormous suffering that the conflict is causing in the Gaza Strip,” the spokesperson said in an emailed statement. “We call for humanitarian breaks and corridors. »
Concerning potential arms exports, he will simply say that they are decided “on a case-by-case basis after careful consideration”.