Germany delays weapons sales to Israel but approves sales to Hamas funder Qatar

Report in German daily Bild claims Qatar sale is linked to Ukraine weapons transfer

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According to a report in the German daily Bild, the German government has postponed further weapons sales to Israel while at the same time approving the sale of heavy weapons systems to the Emirate of Qatar.

Qatar is one of the most significant financial supporters of the terror group Hamas and has hosted several of the Hamas political leaders in Doha for around a decade.

Bild reported that the decision to continue arms sales to Qatar appears to be linked to an agreement in which Qatar would transfer older equipment to Ukraine in exchange for newer equipment from German defense firms.

Last year, the Israeli government requested the purchase of several thousand rounds of ammunition for its Merkava battle tanks, with additional requests for other military equipment.

However, according to the Bild article, Germany has not responded with its decision, despite Israel being engaged in active fighting on several fronts, including the war in Gaza against Hamas, and the escalating conflict with Hezbollah, along Israel's northern border with Lebanon.

The move is concerning for Israel as German Chancellor Olaf Scholz had pledged solidarity with Israel following the Hamas invasion and terror attack in southern Israel on Oct. 7.

Shortly after the attack, Scholz visited Israel and made a bold declaration of support for the Jewish nation, saying: “Germany’s history and the responsibility it had for the Holocaust requires us to help maintain the security and existence of Israel.”

According to Austrian news magazine Profil, the German government has not issued export permits for arms to Israel since March.

In November, the Ministry of Economic Affairs, which is responsible for arms exports, said that "applications for the export of arms to Israel would be processed and decided on as a matter of priority.”

However, according to Profil, the majority of export permits for weapons were granted in the period immediately following Oct. 7.

Profil reported that export volumes (figured in sales amounts) had fallen “massively,” from 326 million Euros in the 2023 year to 14.5 million Euros in 2024 (with a cutoff date of Aug. 21, 2024). The report noted that this amount did not even cover the costs of the item, “Contribution to the procurement of defense systems for Israel,” which was allotted 45 million euros for 2024.

There appear to be factors hindering the sale of weapons to Israel, despite Scholz's promises of support.

In July, when asked about Germany’s support for Israel following the release of an International Court of Justice (ICJ) opinion regarding Israel, Scholz stated, “We have supplied Israel with weapons, and we have not made a decision not to do so again.”

Profil noted that Scholz chairs the Federal Security Council, which meets in secret and has the responsibility of approving applications for arms exports from Germany. The magazine also noted that while “Scholz is wary of saying that Germany has made the decision to stop supplying weapons of war to Israel,” that is the de facto result of the council’s failure to approve export licenses.

The Austrian magazine says the ICJ and ICC (International Criminal Court) cases against Israel and leaders Benjamin Netanyahu and Yoav Gallant have likely caused coalition partners within the German government to be skittish about supplying arms to Israel.

The magazine quoted an anonymous employee of the Federal Security Council, saying: “All in all, the growing concerns are the reason why the number of permits is decreasing, even if no one wants to say so.”

Klaus-Peter Willsch, from the CDU party, a current member of the Committee on Economic Affairs and Energy, denied knowledge of any deliberate action on the part of the German government.

"After an examination of my office, we are not aware of any companies that have received refusals of defense exports to Israel," Willsch told Israel Hayom during a visit to Israel as part of a delegation of MPs from the Bundestag's Economic Affairs Committee.