Overview
- The chancellor left Saturday for talks with King Abdullah II in Aqaba before heading to Jerusalem to see President Isaac Herzog and meet Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday.
- His program includes a visit to Yad Vashem and meetings with former Hamas hostages and bereaved families.
- The government says Merz will press concerns over compliance with international law, rising settler violence, and steps viewed as obstructing a negotiated two‑state solution.
- Berlin recently lifted a partial embargo on arms exports to Israel after months of strain over Gaza policy, reopening defense cooperation that had angered Israel when restricted.
- Domestic pressure has intensified, with Die Linke and Amnesty International condemning the planned meeting over the ICC warrant and urging an arms embargo, while ex-ambassador Shimon Stein advocates entry bans for hardline Israeli ministers.