Germany announces humanitarian aid for Lebanon

As conditions following Israeli strikes in Lebanon continue to deteriorate, Germany has announced an additional humanitarian aid package worth approximately $108 million to the region, according to Middle East Eye and agencies on March 7th.

In a post on X, Germany’s Foreign Office said it was “deeply worried” about the increasingly dire humanitarian conditions in Lebanon, and that the funding was aimed at helping internally displaced people.

Tensions between Lebanon and Israel have escalated amid the US-Israeli war on Iran and Israeli strikes on Lebanon, which has also led the country to delay its elections for two years.

Despite expressing concern about Israeli aggression, Germany signed a security pact with Israel to increase cooperation in areas of counterterrorism and cyber defence on January 11th.

Cooperation was agreed despite Israel repeatedly violating the US-backed ceasefire by continuing to bombard Gaza and refusing to withdraw its troops.

Germany approved a $3.1 billion arms deal with Israel in December 2025, under which Tel Aviv would supply Berlin with Arrow 3 missile defence systems.

Following the arms deal signing, Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz said that Germany’s approval of the deal “is a clear expression of the deep trust that Germany places in the State of Israel.”

In October, a deal was made with Eurospike, a subsidiary of Israel’s Rafael Advanced Defence Systems, to supply Germany with Spike anti-tank missiles.

Rafael is one of several defence contractors facing criticism over alleged complicity in war crimes amid Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza, which has killed over 71,000 people since 2023.

Although Germany suspended arms exports to Israel in August 2025 in response to Israeli plans to fully occupy Gaza, the suspension was scheduled to be lifted roughly three months later in November.

Despite Israel’s repeated ceasefire violations, Chancellor Friedrich Merz reaffirmed Germany’s support for Israel in November, emphasising the importance of upholding the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas.

Furthermore, outrage erupted in October when footage emerged of Germany’s Education Minister, Karin Prien, posing near a map depicting Palestinian and Syrian territories as part of Israel, which is linked to a territorial expansion project known as “Greater Israel.”

Germany is Israel’s second-largest supplier of weapons, providing roughly 47% of arms and granting Israel military equipment support licenses worth $564 million between October 2023 and May 2025.

Ties between Germany and Israel have persisted for decades, with the former’s seemingly unwavering support often perceived as an attempt at redemption for World War II-era atrocities like the Holocaust, which killed at least six million European Jews.

Middle East Eye and agencies, Maghrebi.org