German FM urges 'Israel' to do more to protect Gaza civilians

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Agencies
6 Jan 2024 07:07

German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock says the Gaza Strip must not be occupied.

German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock gives a press conference with Luxembourg's Foreign Affairs Minister on January 5, 2024, in Berlin. (Photo by John MACDOUGALL / AFP)

German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said Friday that "Israel" must make more efforts to protect the civilian population of the Gaza Strip.

"In its actions, Israel must do more to protect civilians, because peace cannot be achieved if there is no prospect of a decent life, if after the war the Gaza Strip is uninhabitable," Baerbock told a news conference with her Luxembourg counterpart Xavier Bettel.

She said the Gaza Strip must not be occupied, its population must not be expelled and territories must not be seized from the Palestinian Strip.

At the same time, the Gaza Strip should no longer "pose a threat to Israel", she said.

Earlier on Friday, Gaza's Government Media Office reported that "Israel" has dropped 65,000 tons of explosives and missiles on Gaza in three months, which outweighs and is more powerful than three nuclear bombs that the US dropped on the Japanese city of Hiroshima.

The report said that the "occupation aircraft dropped over 45,000 missiles and giant bombs, some of them weighing two thousand pounds of explosives, during the comprehensive genocidal war on the Gaza Strip, deliberately targeting entire residential areas."

The deliberate targeting of civilians is further proven by the occupation's use of "dumb bombs"; i.e. imprecise and unguided bombs.

Moreover, the occupation used at least nine types of internationally prohibited missiles in the Strip, including the repeated use of white phosphorus, which has been intensely criticized and condemned.

This comes as the Ministry of Health in Gaza confirmed that the number of Palestinians killed in the Israeli aggression has risen to 22,600, in addition to 57,910 injuries, since October 7.

According to the Ministry, in the past 24 hours alone, the Israeli occupation committed 15 massacres against Palestinian families, killing 162 and injuring 206.