German Economy Minister Robert Habeck said on Saturday Israel's military offensive in Gaza was breaking international law. 

"The famine, the suffering of the Palestinian population and the attacks in the Gaza Strip are, as we are now seeing in court, incompatible with international law," Habeck said, in reference to a ruling by the International Court of Justice (ICJ) calling on Israel to end its offensive in Rafah.

"Israel must not carry out this attack, at least not in the way it did in the Gaza Strip before, bombing refugee camps and so on," Habeck added.

Habeck also said that the war could end immediately if Hamas lays down their arms. Hamas is designated as a terror organization by the US, Germany, EU and others. 

In separate comments on Saturday, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz was keen to emphasize that Israel should "respect the rules of international law." 

"That is why we have always been very clear in saying that we cannot imagine an offensive in Rafah without terrible, irresponsible human losses," Scholz said.