Gaza: Germany tries to have the case against it dismissed before the International Court of Justice

This Monday, September 7, Germany was before the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in The Hague. Berlin is asking judges to dismiss the case brought against it by Nicaragua, which accuses it of having failed in its international obligations by continuing to support Israel, particularly militarily, during the war in Gaza. The case dates back to March 1, 2024. Nicaragua then seized the ICJ, considering that Germany, through its political, financial and military support for Israel, had notably failed in its obligation to prevent genocide provided for by the 1948 Convention. Managua also criticized Berlin for its attitude towards international humanitarian law and the suspension of its funding to UNRWA.

For the moment, the judges are not ruling on these accusations. Germany first seeks to prevent the case from being examined on its merits.

Berlin challenges Court’s jurisdiction

Before the judges, the German representatives requested the rejection of Nicaragua’s requests. Berlin considers in particular that Managua had not taken the necessary steps before seizing the Court and that part of the accusations do not fall within the jurisdiction that the Genocide Convention gives to the ICJ. Germany has also been putting forward another argument since the start of the proceedings: to determine whether Berlin contributed to violations of international law, the Court should first rule on the acts committed by Israel. However, Israel is not a party to this procedure between Nicaragua and Germany.

Behind these legal debates, however, lies a much broader question: how far does the responsibility of a State which provides arms or assistance to a country accused of extremely serious violations of international law extend? This is precisely what gives this affair a particular significance.

An affair that goes far beyond Germany

Germany is one of Israel’s main supporters and, after the United States, its second largest arms supplier. Berlin, for its part, claims to control its arms exports and act in accordance with international law. In 2025, the German government temporarily suspended certain authorizations for equipment likely to be used in Gaza, before lifting these restrictions. But Nicaragua poses another question before the ICJ: when a State is informed of a risk of violations of the Genocide Convention, can it continue to provide military support without incurring its own responsibility?

The 1948 Convention does not simply prohibit States from committing genocide. It also imposes on them an obligation of prevention. It is on this ground that Managua seeks to have Berlin judged.

The issue therefore goes beyond the German case alone. A decision allowing this procedure to proceed could have consequences for other states that provide arms or military assistance to countries engaged in conflicts where serious violations of international law are suspected.

A first legal battle had already taken place in 2024

In April 2024, Nicaragua asked the ICJ to urgently order Germany to suspend its military aid to Israel. The Court did not grant the requested provisional measures. But it had not put an end to the case either, which therefore continued its legal path. Two years later, Berlin is now trying to have it dismissed before the judges can even examine the accusations on their merits. The hearings opened this Monday must continue until Thursday September 10. Nicaragua will in turn present its arguments to convince the judges that the Court is indeed competent to examine the case.

We will then have to wait for the decision of the ICJ. There will therefore be no verdict today on Germany’s responsibility. But behind this procedural battle lies a question that has become central since Gaza: does international responsibility stop at the States which directly wage war, or can it also concern those which arm and support them?

It is this question that the Nicaragua versus Germany case could, in the long term, force international justice to decide.