Aengus Ó Snodaigh (Dublin South Central, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I thank Amnesty International for its presentation and report and commend it on the hugely valuable and influential work it undertakes here and in other countries. Its commitment to addressing and highlighting human rights abuses has been second to none. There are three key points I wish to raise, one of which relates to the case of Ibrahim Halawa. Amnesty International's designation of Ibrahim Halawa as a prisoner of conscience along with other prisoners of conscience helped raise his profile because of the way Amnesty International is recognised around the world. My key question is what more we can do as politicians and as a Government in respect of the case of Ibrahim Halawa and other individuals who have been illegally detained by the Egyptian Government? Are there specific steps we can take? What work is Amnesty International undertaking in respect of the forthcoming trial? I know it had a meeting yesterday, which I was unable to attend. Deputy Crowe, who is a member of the committee, is still out sick. I apologise if I am repeating what was said yesterday. If the witnesses do not wish to answer it, that is fine. Ibrahim Halawa is an Irish citizen and one immediately gravitates to people one knows, people who are citizens, and then one often looks abroad. Our job as the Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade is to ensure citizens from other countries are also looked after and enjoy the rights we would expect Irish citizens to enjoy.

The issue of Sri Lanka has not been mentioned. An internal investigation into war crimes is taking place. It involves military war crimes and crimes against humanity - a plethora of abuse that occurred during a very vicious war on that island. It has been suggested that this domestic investigation cannot be transparent because it is open to interference, particularly since some of those accused of being central to the military abuses have been promoted within Sri Lanka and that there should be an international investigation by a reputable source, as happened in other areas after wars when an international team of inquiry was brought in to investigate and make findings. Would it be appropriate for Ireland to seek support within the UN for this type of activity?

The witnesses also mentioned Gaza. The situation in Palestine in general has been at the forefront of this committee's work over the years, as well as the work of Amnesty International. It seems that the more reports are produced by the UN to document Israeli war crimes, the more entrenched they get. They continue their colonial settlements, to have an illegal wall in Palestine and to intern thousands of Palestinians illegally. The witnesses mentioned the collective punishment of Gaza, which continues. What more can governments such as that of Ireland do? Would the recognition of the state of Palestine be enough? How can we use the mechanisms of the UN to go beyond just another report? How do we address the situation in Gaza?

I left Gaza by sea in 2008. I was on the last boat in and the last boat out. The situation has got far worse since then. I have seen the reports. I would love to go back but even politicians such as MEPs are being prevented from entering to see the humanitarian state of play. This is partly because of the situation in Egypt but it is mainly due to the blockade by Israel. The humanitarian situation was bad in 2008 when I was there so I can only guess what it is like now.

I commend Amnesty International on its work over the years and wish it well in the future.