Germany and Finland on Tuesday urged the international community to intensify pressure on Israel to permit the swift delivery of humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip, where conditions continue to deteriorate amid a deepening crisis.
The call comes as Israel broadens its military operations in Gaza, prompting global outcry. For months, the region has endured a blockade that severely restricted the flow of essential supplies. Although some aid is now being allowed in, the scale remains insufficient to meet the urgent needs of civilians facing acute shortages of food, water, and medical supplies.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, who has recently voiced increasingly critical views of Israel’s actions, stressed the urgency of the situation. “Humanitarian aid must be allowed into Gaza immediately,” Merz declared.
“We must put pressure on Israel to ensure the aid truly reaches its target. But it is also crucial that Hamas must not prevent humanitarian aid from arriving,” he told reporters alongside Finnish Prime Minister Petteri Orpo in Finland.
“What we have seen in the Gaza Strip is in no way acceptable,” Merz said, describing the impact on the civilian population as “excessive” while calling for an end to the killing and suffering.
Orpo also urged for humanitarian aid to enter Gaza urgently.
“Humanitarian aid must get through immediately and we must put pressure on Israel to ensure that humanitarian aid does indeed get through, but also to ensure that Hamas does not prevent it from getting through either,” Orpo said.
“This is a terrible human catastrophe and we must be able to tackle it,” Orpo added.
In Sweden, tensions with Israel escalated on Tuesday as the Israeli ambassador was formally summoned to the Swedish foreign ministry. The Nordic nation issued a strong appeal, urging Israel to “immediately ensure safe and unhindered humanitarian access to Gaza.”
In an official statement, the Swedish foreign ministry acknowledged Israel’s legitimate right to self-defence. However, it did not shy away from criticism of Israel’s ongoing military campaign in Gaza. “The current way the war is waged is unacceptable,” the ministry stated, reflecting growing frustration over the humanitarian fallout of the conflict.
The move aligns Sweden with a growing chorus of international voices demanding greater accountability from Israel and immediate steps to ease the humanitarian crisis in the besieged territory.
“Israel must fulfil its obligations to protect civilians and civilian infrastructure in accordance with international humanitarian law,” the statement said.
