Overview
- After talks with Jordan’s King Abdullah II in Aqaba, Merz warned against any West Bank annexation and said the path to Palestinian statehood must stay open.
- He landed in Jerusalem on Saturday, met President Isaac Herzog and is due to meet Prime Minister Benjamin Netanjahu on Sunday.
- Merz called for the stabilized Gaza ceasefire to move into a second phase that includes Hamas disarmament and the start of reconstruction, with more humanitarian access before winter.
- He reaffirmed Germany’s solidarity with Israel and its right to self‑defense, while noting the Gaza campaign had posed dilemmas that led to a temporary curb on certain arms exports now lifted.
- The visit draws domestic criticism in Germany as an ICC arrest warrant for Netanjahu and concerns over settler violence and international law sharpen the political sensitivities.