Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu briefed German Chancellor Friedrich Merz on Israel's attack on Iran during a telephone conversation Friday morning, Merz said in a statement.

“Israel has the right to self-defense and Iran must not develop nuclear weapons,” the German Chancellor said in the statement. 

At the same time, Merz urged both sides to “refrain from escalation.”

It is not known whether Israel warned Germany of an attack on Iran before it happened, as Spiegel magazine reported Friday.