Germany and EU stop aid to Palestinians

All aid would be put to the test, it was said. Germany is also suspending all payments for the time being.

After Hamas’ major attack on Israel, both the EU and Germany stopped their aid payments for Palestinians. Aid funds amounting to 700 million euros are being examined. “All payments will be suspended immediately. All projects will be reviewed,” said EU Enlargement Commissioner Oliver Varhelyi on the online service X, formerly Twitter. All new issues, including for the current year, would be postponed “until further notice”.

Ministry of Development: No final stop

A spokeswoman for the Development Aid Ministry also said in Berlin that the programs would now be comprehensively reviewed. However, this does not mean a final stop to financing, as the outcome of the examinations is still open. According to the ministry, around 125 million euros in bilateral development cooperation were promised for this year and next.

These are longer-term projects. The speaker cited water supply and sanitation, a desalination plant, vocational training, job creation for young people and food security as examples. Development Minister Svenja Schulze (SPD) had previously confirmed that the federal government would review its entire commitment to the Palestinian territories.