JERUSALEM: Hamas is using Gaza residents as a 鈥渟hield,鈥� the German foreign minister said Friday, as Israel prepared an expected ground offensive in retaliation for the militants鈥� deadly weekend assault.
鈥淗amas is now barricading itself behind more innocent people and is using them as a shield in Gaza,鈥� Annalena Baerbock said in a news conference in Israel alongside her Israeli counterpart Eli Cohen.
鈥淗amas has taken the entire population of Gaza hostage,鈥� Baerbock said on a visit close to the border with the Gaza Strip.
鈥淭heir tunnels, their weapons depots and command centers are deliberately located in residential buildings, supermarkets and universities. Maybe even in hospitals,鈥� Baerbock said.
Hamas fighters broke through the militarised border barrier around the enclave on Saturday, killing more than 1,300 people in Israel and taking an estimated 150 Israeli, foreign and dual-national hostages.
Israel has retaliated to Hamas鈥檚 attacks by hitting targets in Gaza with thousands of munitions, killing at least 1,799 people.
Fears for Gaza鈥檚 inhabitants have grown after Israel鈥檚 army called for 1.1 million 鈥� nearly half of the total population 鈥� to clear the territory鈥檚 north ahead of a possible ground invasion.
Baerbock said democracies, among them Germany and Israel, 鈥渢ake seriously鈥� the protection of the civilian population.
鈥淐ivilians need safe spaces where they can find protection and be provided with essentials,鈥� Baerbock said, a subject she had discussed with her counterpart.
Germany was likewise in talks with the United Nations and Egypt, which also shares a border with the Gaza Strip, about the protection of civilians.
Baerbock also called for the release of the hostages taken by Hamas during their assault, among them German nationals.
鈥淭he immediate release of these people is the expectation of all those who stand on the side of humanity,鈥� Baerbock said.