(Bloomberg) -- Germany’s ambassador to Israel complained to Benjamin Netanyahu’s office after details of an alleged clash between the Israeli prime minister and German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock at a meeting in Tel Aviv were published in the media.

Germany is traditionally one of Israel’s strongest backers and has staunchly supported the country’s right to defend itself, but the incident is threatening to sour those ties and Baerbock was clearly angry about the apparent leak when asked about it at a news conference on Friday.

According to Israel’s Channel 13, the altercation during Wednesday’s talks was triggered by video footage from Gaza shown to Baerbock of abundantly stocked markets and beaches where Palestinians are seen swimming and sunbathing.

After Netanyahu asserted that the footage proved there is no humanitarian crisis there, Baerbock countered by saying that the situation in Gaza is catastrophic, citing the threat of famine.

According to Channel 13 and Germany’s Bild newspaper, the Israeli premier then told Baerbock that his government isn’t like the Nazis, in an apparent reference to attempts to hide the true horrors of death camps.

Baerbock was asked about the alleged incident on Friday at her news conference following talks with Group of Seven counterparts in Capri.

“We don’t report from confidential talks,” Baerbock, a member of the Greens party, told reporters.

“The German ambassador has been in contact with the staff of the prime minister and made clear what we think about this distorting publication,” she added. “Regret was expressed to us about the publication, the source of which is apparently unclear. We don’t have anything to add.”

Ophir Falk, a diplomatic adviser to Netanyahu, told Bloomberg that, in his opinion, the premier and Baerbock had had “a good meeting” and he knew of no leak about the meeting from Netanyahu’s office or a complaint from the German government.

He pushed back against the suggestion that there is a danger of famine in Gaza, saying that “many are overweight and none suffer from malnutrition.”

“Israel has enabled over 23,000 humanitarian trucks to date and will continue to do so but it is not Israel’s responsibility to feed Gazans,” Falk added.

Baerbock has persistently lamented the humanitarian situation in Gaza and repeatedly urged Israel to allow in more aid. During her visit to Tel Aviv, she also called on Netanyahu to avoid escalating the conflict with Iran.

--With assistance from Ethan Bronner and Galit Altstein.

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