Criminal complaint filed against Chancellor Merz in Germany over 'dirty work' remark
A criminal complaint has been filed against German Chancellor Friedrich Merz on the grounds that he acted in violation of the German constitution by using the phrase, "the dirty work that Israel is doing for all of us."
AA
In a joint statement issued by numerous figures, including artist Dieter Hallervorden, author Albrecht Müller, and former members of parliament, it was stated: "We are filing a criminal complaint against German Chancellor Friedrich Merz. Merz has violated, in particular, Articles 9, 25, and 26 of the German Basic Law."
It was noted that Merz, who served as chairman of the board of BlackRock, the world's largest arms investor, before becoming Chancellor, attempted to justify Israel's attacks against Iran—which violate international law—during the G7 Summit held in Canada on June 17, 2025, by describing them as "the dirty work that Israel is doing for all of us."
The statement pointed out that praising Israel's attacks is clearly contrary to the UN Charter, and requested that the Federal Public Prosecutor and the Berlin Public Prosecutor's Office initiate criminal proceedings against the Federal Chancellor.
The statement further highlighted that the Chancellor's praise of Israel's attacks is not only contrary to national and international law but also employs Nazi terminology, noting that in 1942, Nazi officer August Haefner attempted to justify the mass execution of 34,000 Jews at the Babi Yar concentration camp using the same term, "dirty work."
Signatories to the criminal complaint include cabaret artist Uwe Steimle, musician Diether Dehm, entrepreneur Klaus Dieter Böhm, publisher Matthias Oehme, singer Alexa Rodrian, writer Jenny Farrell, sculptor Uli Barnickel, journalist and author Patrik Baab, former member of parliament Andrej Hunko, and Member of the European Parliament Michael von der Schulenburg.
"ISRAEL IS DOING THE DIRTY WORK FOR ALL OF US"
While in Canada for the G7 Summit, Chancellor Merz responded to a question from a ZDF television reporter asking whether it was very attractive for the Israelis to do this dirty work by saying:
"I am grateful to you for the term 'dirty work.' This is the dirty work that Israel is doing for all of us. We are also affected by this regime. This mullah regime has brought death and destruction to the world with its attacks. With Hezbollah, with Hamas in Israel on October 7. If it weren't for the regime in Tehran, this would never have been possible. The supply of drones to Russia from Tehran. Yes, the dirty work that Israel is doing there."