Lawyers representing Germany at the International Court of Justice in The Hague went on the offensive on Tuesday, calling Nicaragua’s case against it for facilitating genocide in Gaza by supplying war weapons to Israel “one-sided” and divorced from reality.

Saying they want to set the record straight, Germany used slides and documents to present a detailed account of what it says is the actual amount of both the supplies it has given to Israel and the aid it has provided to Palestinians since the October 7 Hamas attacks.

On behalf of Germany, professor Christian Tams said that Germany’s strict licensing requirements for exporting war weapons to Israel means each request is decided on a case-by case basis.  To date, 97% of the licenses the country has granted have been mostly for defensive or subordinate military equipment—including protective gear like masks, helmets and camouflage paint—that can’t plausibly be used to commit war crimes, he said.

“As a matter of fact, only four war weapons have been licensed for export since October 2023, three of which concern test or practice equipment,” he told the court’s 16 judges. “The minute we look closely, Nicaragua’s accusations fall apart.”

Germany presented the numbers—€254.5 million—to show it’s been the biggest international donor to Palestinians since October, and said its temporary decision to pause money to the Palestinian refugee agency UNRWA has not halted a single euro of aid. “Germany honours its pledges,” he said.

Nicaragua argued in court on Monday that by providing political, financial and military support to Israel and defunding UNRWA, Germany is knowingly facilitating genocide against Palestinians, in breach of its obligations under the Genocide Convention and other international laws and treaties.

“It is indeed a pathetic excuse to the Palestinian children, women and men in Gaza to provide humanitarian aid, including through airdrops, on the one hand, and to furnish the weapons and military equipment that are used to kill and annihilate them on the other hand,” Nicaragua lawyer Daniel Müller told judges.

Nicaragua wants the court to order Germany to stop its aid to Israel and to start giving money again to UNRWA. Germany, the second largest arms exporter to Israel after the US, says it is giving money to UNRWA’s work in the West Bank, Lebanon, Syria and Jordan while it examines future aid through the organization to Gaza. In the meantime, it says it is providing relief to Gazans through other aid groups including UNICEF, the World Food Programme and the International Committee of the Red Cross.

Germany says it supports both Israel’s right to exist and self-defence as part of its “historical responsibility” from the Holocaust, but it also says it supports Palestinians’ right to self-determination and a two-state solution. “There is no doubt where Germany stands,” said Tania von Uslar-Gleichen, head of Germany’s legal team. “Our position is defined by international law.”

Hamas’ October 7 attacks killed some 1,200 people in Israel and more than 200 Israelis were taken hostage. More than 33,000 Palestinians have been killed by Israel’s war in Gaza since, according to the territory’s health ministry.

Israel strongly denies that its war amounts to genocide. But with Israel absent from these proceedings, Germany says the court lacks jurisdiction to make any ruling at all.

A decision will likely take weeks.