Germany's Scholz calls for Gaza ceasefire to allow more humanitarian aid

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said on Wednesday that a ceasefire in Gaza was to allow more humanitarian aid was looking more realistic, though he warned against offering false hope.

Meanwhile, the German government has approved exports of close to 303 million euros' ($329 million) worth of defence equipment to Israel.

By comparison, 32 million euros' ($35 million) worth of defence exports were approved in all of 2022. Speaking to the German parliament on Wednesday, Scholz added that a reform of the Palestinian Authority (PA) was "essential".

"There were no elections for the past 17 years and you can’t really talk about legitimacy for those in leadership roles if they haven’t been confirmed for such a long time”, Scholz said.