Michael D Higgins (Galway West, Labour)

I welcome the Minister's reply and I agree with much of it. I welcome the return to EU statements of language such as "occupation", "illegal settlements", "expansion" and the reference to international law. My question referred to the breach in the wall at Rafah. Between 700,000 and 800,000 people out of a total of 1.5 million moved in 48 hours, which indicates the deprivation that exists in Gaza. The representative of the United Nations relief and works agency in Gaza stated that to make the progress, Hamas needs to be involved in talks. I agree entirely with the part of the Minister's reply that unequivocally condemns violence, be it in the context of rockets aimed at civilian villages in southern Israel or the indiscriminate killing of Palestinian civilians. One must be clear in this regard. However, does the Minister agree it would be valuable if the Union engaged with both Hamas and Fatah in an effort to achieve a solution, even on the practical ground that the crossing point at Rafah is controlled by Hamas in Gaza? Is it not somewhat abstract to suggest that Fatah will run a crossing point where it has no presence?

Is the Union in a position to go back on its decision not to recognise the result of the elections? The Minister mentioned the importance of international monitoring but these elections were monitored by the Carter Institute, among other bodies, and regarded as fair. I do not defend Hamas but simply make a case for the future of a peace process that must include Hamas and Fatah.

See this speech in context