Everything relevant to bilateral relations: a look back at the past two weeks and a look ahead at the next two weeks
Every other Thursday, The Bilateral Briefing provides its paying subscribers with a summary of all the events that matter for German-Israeli relations. Each item comes with links to original sources and further media coverage. Subscribe now to stay fully informed about the bilateral relationship.
Looking back at the two weeks from October 8 to 21, this update covers, among other things, Israel’s refusal to let a taz journalist enter the country, a Bundesrat initiative to secure Israel’s participation in EU research funding, a study on Israel-related antisemitism at German universities, the conviction of two Iranian agents over plans to attack Volker Beck and Josef Schuster, and the controversy over the speech by Peace Prize laureate Philippe Sands.
Looking ahead to the two weeks from October 22 to November 5, we highlight, among other things, the Israeli election, the party conference of the Left Party in Berlin, the Shimon Peres Prize ceremony, and the photo exhibition “Israel 733:02:35” at the Bundestag’s Paul-Löbe-Haus.
Looking Back
Israel Denies Entry to taz Correspondent
Israel has refused a work visa to Serena Bilanceri, correspondent for the German daily taz, and barred her from entering the country. Bilanceri has reported from Israel and the Palestinian territories for years and has been the paper’s official correspondent since June 2026. She is currently in Jordan. In a statement, the paper’s editors-in-chief called the decision a “serious interference with press freedom” and urged the German government to work for Bilanceri’s return.
Bilanceri was not given an official reason. According to Israeli media reports, the Population and Immigration Authority cited two texts the journalist published in 2025 in which she allegedly called for sanctions against Israel. The basis is reportedly a February 2025 amendment that allows residence permits to be denied on grounds including calls for a boycott. Avi Cohen Scali, director-general of Israel’s Diaspora Affairs Ministry, told the Jerusalem Post that calls for a boycott “under the guise of professional journalism” would not be tolerated. Bilanceri said she had never called for a boycott but had advocated sanctions in response to the Israeli government’s policies in the West Bank.
The German Foreign Office is taking the case “very seriously” and has raised it with the Israeli government “at high and the highest levels,” a spokesperson said at the government press conference on October 14. Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul (CDU) also raised the case with his Israeli counterpart. Green Party co-leader Franziska Brantner spoke of a “serious interference with press freedom,” and Reporters Without Borders also sharply criticized the decision.
The Association of Jewish Journalists in Germany said, according to the Jüdische Allgemeine, that while it does not always agree with Bilanceri’s arguments, it appeals to Israel to allow her entry: “Israel must be able to tolerate critical journalism.” The association’s co-chair, Susanne Stephan, criticized Israeli authorities’ increasingly harsh treatment of journalists critical of the government in a guest article. According to taz, several European journalists have been denied entry to Israel since 2025.
German States Push for Israel’s Participation in EU Research
On Friday, October 16, Hesse, Lower Saxony, and Brandenburg introduced a joint resolution in the Bundesrat, Germany’s upper house. It calls on the federal government to push firmly for Israel’s unrestricted participation in the EU’s next research framework program (2028 to 2034). The background is a July 2025 proposal by the European Commission to partially exclude Israel from the current research program Horizon Europe. According to a press release from Brandenburg’s science ministry, the motion was referred to committees.
“In my view, the EU research framework program is the wrong place for politicization,” said Hesse’s science minister Timon Gremmels (SPD), according to a