Chris Andrews (Dublin Bay South, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

The double standards from the Government are absolutely sickening. There was no issue or problem referring Russia to the ICC. The hypocrisy is absolutely clear and is unacceptable. In the past 24 hours, I have received thousands of emails from members of the public asking that Ireland take a stand against the horror, the genocide and the carpet bombing engulfing the Gaza Strip. I have been told from contacts there that dogs are starting to eat the corpses of the bodies in the rubble. It is a never-ending horror. We are witnessing genocide. Today it is Palestine; tomorrow it could be anywhere. We need to see the international community take a stand against the genocide occurring in Gaza. There has to be a cost to Israel ignoring international law. Israel has faced no diplomatic consequences for breaching international law and committing war crimes and this must change. Ireland must step up and refer Israel to the ICC. Let us be straight. The EU is not a neutral body watching this genocide. It is not some innocent bystander. The reality is that the EU is an enabler of this genocide and has profited in billions due to Israel's brutal system of apartheid and its war crimes against the people of Palestine. Since 2012, the EU states have licensed over €2 billion of military contracts to Israel. The EU hints at Israel to show some restraint, but if it is serious about a lasting peace in the region it should stop selling and profiting from the weapons being used in genocide. We see the pressure that the ICC arrest warrant for Vladimir Putin has created, severely restricting his travel out of fear of arrest. Israel must be referred to the ICC and Ireland must do this.

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