German FM to travel to Middle East next week

BERLIN

German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock will visit the Middle East next week, Berlin said on June 21, as the Gaza war grinds on and fears grow of a wider regional conflict.

Baerbock will travel to Israel on June 24, immediately after a meeting of European Union foreign ministers in Luxembourg, a Foreign Ministry spokeswoman said.

On arrival in Israel, Baerbock, who has visited the region several times since the start of the Israel-Hamas war, will give a speech at the Herzliya Security Conference.

On June 25, she will hold talks with Palestinian prime minister Mohammed Mustafa in Ramallah, in the occupied West Bank.

Baerbock will also meet with the Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz in Jerusalem.

Subsequently, Baerbock will travel to Lebanon for talks with officials in Beirut, including the migration minister.

Baerbock's discussions with officials would focus on "the war in Gaza and the continuing catastrophic humanitarian situation,” as well as "the question of what a future could look like that allows Israelis and Palestinians to live together in safety", the ministry spokeswoman said.

"In the Palestinian territories, the situation in the West Bank will also be a focus, as will the reform efforts of the Palestinian Authority," the spokeswoman said.

"The particularly tense and dangerous situation on the border between Israel and Lebanon," would also be discussed on the trip.

Exchanges between Hezbollah and Israel have escalated in recent weeks and the Israeli military said this week that plans for an offensive in Lebanon "were approved and validated.”

Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah said "no place" in Israel would "be spared our rockets" in a war, and also threatened nearby European Union member Greek Cyprus. The United States has appealed for de-escalation.

The Gaza war's regional fallout has also impacted Yemen, whose Iran-backed Houthi rebels have for months attacked ships on vital trade routes surrounding the Arabian Peninsula country.

The Houthis and Hezbollah say they are acting in response to Israel's actions in Gaza.