The Hind Rajab Foundation(HRF) filed a criminal complaint in Germany against former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert for war crimes committed during the 2008-2009 military offensive in Gaza.
The HRF launched that complaint because Ehud Olmert is scheduled to appear publicly in Berlin on 6 November 2025 at the Haaretz Democracy Conference.
The HRF calls on German authorities to act swiftly to prevent his departure and ensure he is held to account.
The HFR confirmed that the complaint was submitted by German lawyer Melanie Schweizer,was filed simultaneously with the General Public Prosecutor's Office in Berlin and the Federal Public Prosecutor General(Generalbundesanwalt) in Karlsruhe,which has jurisdiction over international crimes under Germany's Code of Crimes against International Law(Volkerstrafgesetzbuch, VStGB).
The HRF revealed that Israeli Defence Forces(IDF) killed more than 1300 Palestinians during the Operation “Cast Lead” on December 2008 when Olmert was the Prime Minister of Israel.
"As Prime Minister of Israel from 2006 to 2009, Ehud Olmert exercised ultimate political and military authority over all Israeli Defense Forces(IDF) operations, including the assault on Gaza launched on 27 December 2008.
Under Olmert's leadership, the Israeli government and military high command executed a large-scale military campaign that resulted in the indiscriminate bombardment of densely populated civilian areas, the destruction of hospitals, schools, and UN facilities, and the killing of more than 1,300 Palestinians, among them over 300 children and 115 women. More than 5,000 people were injured and tens of thousands of homes were destroyed," said Hind Rajab Foundation.
The HRF mentioned that the Goldstone Report, the Amnesty International report “Operation Cast Lead: 22 Days of Death and Destruction”, and the Human Rights Watch report “Rain of Fire” documented a consistent pattern of deliberate or reckless targeting of civilians and civilian objects, the use of white phosphorus munitions in populated areas, and collective punishment of the entire Gaza population through the systematic destruction of vital infrastructure.
The HRF added that, under international law, political and military leaders bear command responsibility for war crimes committed by forces under their control when they knew or should have known of such crimes and failed to prevent or punish them. The complaint therefore holds Olmert personally responsible for the planning, authorization, and failure to restrain or prosecute these actions.
The HRF highlighted that Germany's Code of Crimes against International Law(VStGB),enacted in 2002, allows the prosecution of war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide even if committed abroad by foreign nationals. It has already enabled landmark cases against perpetrators from Syria and other conflict zones.
The Hind Rajab Foundation argued that the same legal principle must apply to Israeli officials responsible for crimes in Gaza.