Duncan Smith (Dublin Fingal East, Labour) | Oireachtas source

At this point in the proceedings it is worth reminding the committee that all of the witnesses so far have failed to recognise that the settlements in the occupied Palestinian territories are illegal. None of them done it in their written testimonies or in answers to questions from this committee. That is a fundamental point of divergence at the very start of this Bill, which is what we are discussing and we have to write a report on. I also think that it heavily caveats, with all due respect, subsequent arguments and testimonies that have been given by the witnesses in terms of arguing against this Bill if they fundamentally do not believe, which they do not, that the settlements are illegal. That is contrary to EU law, UN law and the International Court of Justice, ICJ, and the shared political view of the majority of this committee. We may disagree on other elements of the Bill, but we do not disagree on the settlements. That is a fundamental point in terms of this entire hearing. There is that fundamental disagreement. We diverge at the very start with all the witnesses on this. I think it heavily caveats the proceedings. Mr. Cohen, Rabbi Wieder and the other two witnesses say that this is the only time that Ireland has brought in such a Bill and targeted Israel and that Israel is the only country that Ireland has ever targeted. In 2014, an identical ban was passed into Irish law prohibiting trade in goods and services with Russian-occupied Ukraine. Do the witnesses accept that as a precedent and that Israel is not the only example of the Government deploying such a law?