Court rejects Gazan challenges of German arms exports to Israel

A Berlin court on Wednesday rejected lawsuits filed by several Palestinians in the Gaza Strip seeking to block Germany’s arms exports to Israel.

The plaintiffs had argued that current German export approvals violate Germany’s obligations under international law.

The Berlin Administrative Court dismissed the complaints on procedural grounds challenging the German federal government’s authorization practice.

The court had to rule on two different claims.

In one case, the plaintiff argued that the Germany’s authorization process violated its obligations under international law. This preventive legal protection could only be granted if it was foreseeable that Germany would act in exactly the same way again, explained the presiding judge Stephan Groscuth.

In the second case, four Palestinians living in the Gaza Strip – another plaintiff has since died in an attack – challenged a licence for the export of 3,000 portable anti-tank weapons. They wanted this to be subsequently categorized as illegal. According to the court, this was only possible if there was a risk that the German government would act in the same way again under the same conditions as in the autumn of 2023.

The plaintiffs had previously attempted to block the export of weapons through interim court proceedings, but those efforts were unsuccessful.

The case was heard by the Berlin Administrative Court because Germany’s federal government, which approves arms exports, is based in the city.

One of the seven original plaintiffs, a senior physician who has spent time in the Gaza Strip, appeared in person at the hearing, where he gave an emotional account of events in the Palestinian territory.

As a doctor on the ground, he said he had witnessed injuries and seen the destruction caused by weapons made in Germany. The man, who became a German citizen in 2014, said he fought for the lives of people there “regardless of their skin colour, origin, religion or ethnicity.”

“I expect the same of others,” he added.

The 41-year-old doctor, who has lived in Berlin for more than 20 years, first took legal action against Germany together with his father, who lives in the Gaza Strip.

However, the man withdrew his lawsuit after judge Groscurth explained that it would not be successful because he had been living in Germany for so long.

One of the lawyers representing the other five plaintiffs described the living conditions of his clients, one of whom died in July during an attack in the Gaza Strip. The others live in refugee camps and have all lost several relatives in the war, lawyer Remo Klinger said.

German arms exports to Israel have been a topic of debate for months. After the Hamas-led attacks on Israel on October 7, 2023, Germany significantly increased its arms deliveries to Israel.

In August 2025, amid concerns over escalating Israeli military actions, Chancellor Friedrich Merz temporarily halted approvals for military equipment that could be used in the Gaza conflict.

In September, the German government authorized arms deliveries to Israel valued at at least €2.46 million, according to the Economy Ministry.

In comparison, between January 1 and August 8, 2025, export licences for Israel totalled roughly €250 million ($290 million).

A ceasefire has been in place in the Gaza war since October 10, but there have since been several outbreaks of fighting, killing three Israeli soldiers and more than 240 residents of the Gaza Strip.