Pat Buckley (Cork East, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I am going to put a full stop here. It is as simple as this. We have to refer the Israeli Government to the ICC. I ask the Government to withdraw its amendment. A number of days ago, the High Representative, on behalf of the European Union, stated, "The EU condemns the use of hospitals and civilians as human shields by Hamas." The statement continues, "The EU emphasizes that international humanitarian law stipulates that hospitals, medical supplies and civilians inside hospitals must be protected." There is a contradiction straight away. My biggest problem here, even from speaking to people today, is that a number of years ago we listened to a different government mention weapons of mass destruction, then it went and blitzed the country involved. Funnily enough, there were no weapons of mass destruction. I am getting worried about the misinformation that is coming out here. As it stands, 70% of all those people killed in Gaza and the West Bank are women and children. The only reason that so many have been killed in hospitals is that they are the last place people can go. It is an utter disgrace. It is an absolute genocide.

One thing I never want to see in my life again, after which I stopped going on social media and watching the news, is children being swept against cars like autumn leaves being blown against the wall, and being picked up, bagged and buried. It is an utter disgrace and a shame. There will be shame on the Government if it does not support this motion. We have to do the right thing. We have been persecuted for years and we have learned from experience. I commend everybody in this House who supports this motion and everybody outside this House, all over the world, who has supported the Palestinian people. I am proud to be one of them.

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