John Brady (Wicklow, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Chairman. I also thank the consortium for a thorough opening statement and a PowerPoint presentation that has been circulated to all members as well. I really appreciate that.

In the opening statement we heard of the 96 statements issued by the EU over the last year. It is really concerning that the UN Security Council, which is the body tasked with dealing with wars, consequences and conflict, could not at its third attempt even issue a statement voicing concerns about the civilian casualties, either in Gaza or Israel, or call for a ceasefire. That is very telling, given the backdrop to our meeting this morning where over 60 children have now been butchered in Gaza and more than 200 people killed in total. Of course, this piece of work has been ongoing over the last while and we have had a number of witnesses in at this point. What really spurred the committee into looking at this issue, prior to what is going on in Gaza and some of the events in East Jerusalem at Sheikh Jarrah, was the huge concern with which Members of the Oireachtas and members of the public witnessed the demolition of Irish-funded aid in Khirbet Humsah late last year. That settlement was completely destroyed and there was very visible evidence of Irish-funded structures and aid, which were pictured with the stickers on them so it was very telling.

I have a number of questions I want to ask our witnesses. I believe the Government became a member of the West Bank Protection Consortium in 2017. Following a number of questions I put to the Minister for Foreign Affairs and for Defence, he has stated that Ireland has joined a compensation claim for the demolition of structures that has taken place and I believe a claim of €625,000 has been lodged. I ask our witnesses to speak to what exactly the claim is for. When we hear about demolitions, can they elaborate on what exactly is being talked about? I ask because it is being done to homes, schools and solar panels, that is, basic infrastructure. On the claim that has been lodged, when was it lodged? Were claims lodged previously? How much money, if any, has been paid out in compensation for the claims that have been made? On the prospect of upcoming demolitions, there is huge concern about a number of schools. I think there are about 53 schools earmarked for demolition, the most prominent one at this point is probably the one in Ras al-Tin. I would like to get the witnesses' views on that, it is probably the most high-profile of the schools that are up for demolition. We hear about the statements that have been issued and the impact they have had on Israel in terms of its illegal activities. I noted in Mr. Holt's opening statement he said it is a grave breach of the Geneva Convention and a war crime. Can he elaborate on that? He also mentioned the need for more meaningful countermeasures and the fact that there are no meaningful consequences for Israel's illegal actions. The witnesses might touch on what they would suggest there as a countermeasure. I would also like their views on the pattern which has emerged over a number of years, whereby we pay for houses, infrastructure, schools etc. and then the Israelis come along and demolish them. We then condemn that and lodge compensation claims and finally we donate more money to build again. In the meantime, from the families' perspective, God knows when the bulldozer is coming to demolish their properties. How sustainable is that pattern, going forward?

That is all for now, I hope to have an opportunity to come in again later in the meeting when we have heard some of the responses.