Moscow was reportedly pressuring Nicaragua in a genocide lawsuit against Germany, according to Politico. The Central American country accuses Berlin of "facilitating" genocide in the Gaza Strip. An anonymous intelligence officer believes that Nicaragua "has no reason to interfere in the conflict in the Middle East".
Russia likely pressured the Nicaraguan government, with which it maintains close relations, to utilise the 1948 Genocide Convention to prosecute Germany at the International Court of Justice, Politico reports, citing intelligence sources. Western intelligence officials and diplomats told the portal that the case likely occurred at Moscow's behest.
Nicaraguans "have no reason to interfere in the conflict in the Middle East", a Western intelligence officer told Politico. Meanwhile, Russia's motivation is thought to be to diminish the credibility of the International Court of Justice in Western countries by turning it into a venue for legal speculation, the informants claim. Ukraine filed a case against Russia at the International Court of Justice following the invasion in 2022, with the court siding with Kyiv.
Nicaragua sues Germany. Berlin rejects the accusation
Nicaragua has accused Germany of enabling acts of genocide and violating international humanitarian law by supporting Israel in its conflict in the Gaza Strip with the terrorist organisation Hamas.
Nicaragua argues that by providing Israel with political, financial, and military support and cutting off UNRWA (the UN agency for Palestinian aid, accused of collaborating with Hamas; many countries have suspended its funding) from financial resources, Germany "is not honouring its obligations to prevent genocide and ensure respect for international humanitarian law".
Israel strongly denies that its actions constituted acts of genocide, noting that the conflict was initiated by Hamas, which breached Israel's borders in October of the previous year, killing about 1,200 people and abducting approximately 240 into the Gaza Strip. Israeli legal adviser Tal Becker informed ICJ judges that his country "is fighting a war it did not start and did not want," AP reported.
Germany rejects the accusation. In April, a spokesperson for the Foreign Ministry stated that Germany "has not violated the Genocide Convention or international humanitarian law" and will produce evidence of this during the trial. Nicaragua demands that Germany "immediately suspend aid to Israel, especially military aid."
