Germany faces accusations today, Monday, of "facilitating genocide" against Palestinians through its military and political support for Israel in a lawsuit filed against it by Nicaragua before the International Court of Justice. Nicaragua has urged the court's judges to impose emergency measures to compel Berlin to stop supplying weapons and other forms of support to Israel. Germany responded to the accusations, with Foreign Ministry spokesman Sebastian Fischer stating to reporters prior to the hearings, "We reject the accusations made by Nicaragua," emphasizing that "Germany has not violated the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide or international humanitarian law and will present this fully before the International Court of Justice."
Nicaragua is set to present its case today, while Germany will respond the following day. In the 43-page lawsuit submitted to the court, Nicaragua emphasizes that Germany is violating the 1948 Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, which was signed in the aftermath of the Nazi Holocaust. The document states, "By sending military equipment and now halting funding for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), Germany is facilitating genocide," adding, "Germany's failure is more reprehensible concerning Israel given that Germany maintains a relationship it has declared to be special with it, which allows it to influence its behavior beneficially."
Nicaragua has requested that the International Court of Justice issue a decision to impose "provisional measures," which are emergency orders until the court can consider the case more broadly. Nicaragua further stated in the lawsuit that a ruling of this nature by the court is "necessary and urgent" given that the lives of "hundreds of thousands of people" are at stake.
