German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock was set to arrive in Egypt on Monday for another round of crisis talks amid the increasingly catastrophic humanitarian situation in Gaza, with further stops planned in Israeli and the occupied West Bank.
In Cairo, Baerbock is scheduled to meet Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry. She is then scheduled to fly on to Israel in what will be her sixth visit to the country since the Hamas-led attacks of October 7, which left about 1,200 people dead.
In the evening, she is expected to visit the Israeli-occupied West Bank and meet the leader of the Palestinian Authority (PA), Mahmoud Abbas, in Ramallah. PA Foreign Minister Riad Malki is also expected to join.
A meeting between Baerbock and Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz is scheduled for Tuesday.
On Sunday, the German minister demanded that Israel and Palestinian militant group Hamas make concessions in ongoing negotiations in Qatar regarding the Gaza war and agree to an immediate ceasefire.
"Only an immediate humanitarian ceasefire that leads to a permanent ceasefire will keep the hope for peace alive - for Palestinians and Israelis alike," Baerbock said.
Germany's top diplomat has also voiced concerns regarding the planned Israeli military offensive into Rafah, the southernmost city in Gaza were some 1.5 million people are currently sheltering from Israeli bombing and ground operations elsewhere in the territory.
In comments to parliament, Baerbock expressed doubts that Israeli forces could attack the city without terrible consequences for the civilian population.
The 1.5 million people in Rafah "cannot simply vanish into thin air," Baerbock said.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has pledged to move forward with the assault on Rafah despite international concerns.
While firmly continuing to back Israel's "right to self-defence" after the October 7 attacks, Berlin has slowly grown more critical of Israel's military actions in Gaza, in particular regarding the lack of aid reaching the civilian population.
Baerbock has been calling for a humanitarian ceasefire for weeks, in order to facilitate the release of the remaining hostages taken to Gaza on October 7 and increase the number of aid deliveries into the coastal area.