Timmy Dooley (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

Young Emily Hand was presumed dead as a result of the 7 October onslaught by Hamas. Over the weekend, a story broke suggesting she may have been in captivity for close to a month. It has brought a sharp focus to the minute detail of what lies at the core of this war. We often get lost in the statistics. How many have been killed on one side and how many on the other? What was the size, scale, weight and magnitude of the armaments deployed? How many soldiers are here? How many soldiers are there? Who of national importance has flown where on a particular day? We need to bring it back to that focus.We believe that a child, who is an Irish citizen and an eight-year-old girl, is alive somewhere in Gaza today. If we could continue to focus on that dimension of the war in Gaza, it may help world leaders to start moving to find an immediate or short-term solution that could ultimately be a long-term one.

Emily Hand is only one, hers is the name, but countless thousands of children have been killed in bombs and explosions in the Gaza strip in recent days and weeks. It is hard to quantify. It is hard to know who is telling the truth. It has often been said that the first casualty of any war is the truth and I am sure that is the case here. We have used the Seanad on many occasions to give people an opportunity to speak not only to us but to a wider audience. Would it be possible for the Leader to invite the Palestinian and Israeli ambassadors to address the Seanad at some stage in a controlled and respectful way? It might be helpful because, like in all wars, it comes down to dialogue at the end of the day. I made a comment last night on a programme that I was not concerned whether there would be a humanitarian pause or a ceasefire and someone on X, formerly known as Twitter, decided to take me up on whether I was on one side or the other. Language matters, but in truth, we have to get some kind of cessation and however minor it might be at the outset, it can be built upon. While rockets and bombs are still being traded from one side to the other, there is no chance for little Emily or for every other little Emily in that region. We must move on it.

I note the Tánaiste is in China. That is hugely important for our geopolitical issues and economy into the future. It might be useful for the Leader to invite the Tánaiste to come to the House before or after Christmas to discuss Europe's and Ireland's relationships with China and to have a general debate on the issue.