Steffen Seibert in the “early start”
“Hamas is playing a horrible and perfidious game”
October 30, 2023, 11:08 a.m
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Israel continues to expand its ground operations in the Gaza Strip. They have every right to do that, says the German ambassador to Israel, Steffen Seibert, on ntv. It is still important to get more humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip in order to meet the needs of the civilian population.
The German ambassador to Israel, Steffen Seibert, defends the Israeli army’s beginning ground operations in the Gaza Strip: “Israel is in a situation in which it is forced to defend its population,” said Seibert in the “ntv Frühstart”. Israel’s right to self-defense would also mean “that Israel must do everything it can to prevent such an unimaginably horrific attack from ever happening again.” The interview with ntv was conducted before the death of the kidnapped Shani Louk became known.
The ambassador also points out that this cannot only be done with air strikes from outside, “therefore it was to be expected that Israeli troops would penetrate the northern part of the Gaza Strip. They are starting to do that now and every night brings a certain amount extension.”
Hundreds of thousands of civilians have already followed Israel’s request and left the north of the Gaza Strip to the south, says Seibert, but also emphasizes that hundreds of thousands still remain there. “There is no doubt that there are people dying in the Gaza Strip who are not Hamas fighters,” said the ambassador about the current situation and continued: “Israel tells us that it is doing a lot to minimize this suffering and also tells us “Quite explicitly, the war is directed against Hamas, against those responsible for the incredible terrorist bloodbath on October 7th, and not against the civilian population.”
Increasing danger for Hamas hostages
The federal government is currently looking at what can be done politically and practically to reduce the suffering of the civilian population in the Gaza Strip, said Seibert. “We need to get more humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip. Israel is allowing a lot there now, but it’s still not enough to meet the humanitarian needs.”
As ground operations begin, there are also fears of increasing danger for the Hamas hostages. Seibert confirms that there are still a low double-digit number of German citizens among the hostages and regarding the current status of negotiations about a possible release, he says it is important to use all diplomatic means to talk to those who may have influence on Hamas have. It is clear which actors in the region these are, said Seibert, without going into further detail. “We are talking to all of them. Unfortunately, so far it has only led to the release of four hostages. Hamas is playing a horrible and perfidious game. The world’s demand must be ‘release them all, without conditions, now.’
When asked why the federal government does not negotiate directly with Hamas, but instead chooses a detour through third parties, Seibert says: “It’s not as if Hamas is waiting for calls. Anyone who acts rationally would have this murderous bloodlust on October 7th not unleashed and would never have thought of kidnapping 85-year-old ladies and nine-month-old children.” Hamas would probably assume that the existence of the hostages is a kind of insurance, said the German ambassador, emphasizing again: “We are trying to get news to Hamas through all possible means. So far, the success has not been great, but it is not It’s helpful to talk a lot in public.”