Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock is visiting Israel for the second time in a week as part of her crisis diplomacy in the Middle East. In Tel Aviv, the Green politician first met her Israeli colleague Eli Cohen to exchange views.
Afterwards, a conversation was planned with the opposition politician Benny Gantz, who is also a member of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s cross-campaign war cabinet.
With the trip, Baerbock wants to continue her efforts to prevent a conflagration in the region after the terrorist attacks by the Islamist Hamas on October 7th and the Israeli reactions to them. At the same time, she wants to work for the release of the hostages held by Hamas, among whom are Germans.
“These days we are all Israelis”
On October 13, Baerbock made his first solidarity visit to Israel after the Hamas attacks. Together with Cohen, she visited a crisis center in a city near the Gaza Strip and assured the country of German solidarity. She said: “In these terrible days we stand with you and feel for you. In these days we are all Israelis.”
On Friday afternoon, the Federal Foreign Minister wants to speak to, among others, the acting Prime Minister Najib Mikati and the Commander-in-Chief of the Lebanese Armed Forces, Joseph Aoun, in the Lebanese capital Beirut.
Hezbollah fears stronger intervention
During the talks, Baerbock will primarily try to persuade the country’s political leadership to influence the Shiite organization Hezbollah (Party of God). There are fears that Hezbollah will intervene more strongly in the Gaza war than before.
The group, financed primarily by Iran, is considered much more powerful than Hamas. In addition to better training of fighters, it has a large arsenal of missiles and combat drones.
