Berlin, 6 October 2024 (dpa/MIA) - German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock called last year's Hamas attack on Israel a pivotal moment in both Jewish and German history and said she was embarrassed by the anti-Semitic attacks that have taken place on German streets.

Baerbock, in a guest article written for the Bild am Sonntag newspaper that was obtained by dpa, said the Hamas massacre on October 7 marked a turning point for both Jews and Germans, marking a "before" and "after" time.

She expressed her embarrassment that since then, Jewish people, also in Germany, have felt less secure and that anti-Semitic attacks have increased - and that Iranian rockets fired against Israel have been celebrated on German streets.

"We oppose this. With the full force of the law," Baerbock emphasized. Addressing the people of Israel, she said, "We stand with you."

The foreign minister added that Israel's security is part of Germany's Staatsräson, a term that means Israel's security is part of Germany's national interest.

"Israel has a right to self-defence. Against the violence of Hamas as well as against the rocket terror of Iran and Hezbollah."

On October 7, terrorists from the Palestinian Islamist militia Hamas and other extremist groups killed more than 1,200 people in Israel and abducted about 250 others as hostages into the Gaza Strip. This was the trigger for the Gaza war, in which roughly 42,000 Palestinians have been killed so far, according to the Hamas-controlled health authority, about one-third of them children and young people.

In recent weeks, the conflicts between Israel and the Iran-backed Hezbollah militia in Lebanon have also escalated. There are fears that the entire region could be drawn into a catastrophic war.

MIA file photo