Mr. Colm O'Gorman:

It is incredibly important that I should answer one particular question. It seems extraordinary even to be obliged to say this but Amnesty International has neither received, nor would it entertain, any request from any government, including that of Ireland, to refrain from making public comment in any particular way on any case. That has not happened. If it did happen, it is something we would take very seriously. We would raise it at the most senior level within Government if it ever did happen. We would also probably raise it publicly if it were to happen. We have never, ever been asked not to make any particular statement on Ibrahim Halawa's case. That is not how Amnesty International operates and it is not how we have operated at any time since the organisation was founded in 1961. I cannot ever see it being the way in which we operate.

On what else can we do, we are of the view that diplomatic pressure is incredibly important. We think that the diplomatic pressure other states could apply in this instance is also very important. We have suggested that representatives from embassies in Cairo - especially EU embassies - might be encouraged to visit Ibrahim Halawa in prison, to pay particular attention to the case and to advocate on his behalf. We would certainly like to see increased effort on the part of the External Action Service in respect of this case. We know the organisation is aware of the case and we raised it with Commissioner Mogherini when she visited Dublin a number of months ago, so she is certainly aware of it. We would encourage Ireland to continue to exert every possible pressure to secure Ibrahim's release through diplomatic channels. The State should also encourage the EU and its member states to become involved in advocating on his behalf. That would be incredibly important.

I will revert to Deputy Ó Snodaigh with a further response on Sri Lanka. It is not a country in respect of which Amnesty International Ireland has been doing particular work but I am aware that it is the focus of priority for other parts of our movement. From documents I have seen, I am aware there has been a strong emphasis on accountability mechanisms in respect of war crimes in Sri Lanka. I will revert to the Deputy separately with a more detailed report on that matter.

On Gaza, the Deputy quite rightly pointed out that Israel seems to be emboldened on every occasion this matter is raised and it simply ignores or dismisses charges or allegations, or findings made by UN-mandated commissions to the effect that it has committed war crimes. Why does Israel do so? The answer is that it is allowed to do so. This brings us back again to the question of accountability. The recent engagement of the Palestinian authority with the International Criminal Court, ICC, is a welcome development. We have been saying for some time that we would like to see the situation in Gaza and evidence of war crimes committed by any party to the conflict referred for investigation by the ICC. The court is incredibly important and we would like it to happen soon.