Sandra McLellan (Cork East, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

It is a welcome decision by the Government not to oppose or amend this motion. By creating unity on this issue in the Oireachtas, we will be sending a strong message of solidarity to the Palestinian people and an international message that Ireland will stand up for the right of self-determination. It is vital that the Government takes heed of this motion and the motion recently passed in the Seanad. The Government must now follow through on the substantive steps needed and ensure that it lives up to the commitments outlined and agreed to.

I wish to use this opportunity to highlight some of the current issues relating to Palestinian children being held in detention by Israel. According to a report by the Euro-Mid Observer for Human Rights which was released this summer, from the beginning of 2010 to mid-2014, Israeli forces arrested nearly 3,000 Palestinian children, the majority aged between 12 and 15 years. That number continues to increase due in particular to continued Israeli crackdowns in the occupied East Jerusalem and the West Bank.

The report states that 75% of the detained children are subjected to physical torture and 25% faced military trials. The arbitrary arrests are in violation of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child which Israel ratified in 1991. It is one clear example of how Israel continues to violate international and human rights law with its occupation of Palestine.

The arrests of children are largely carried out in the middle of the night without clear justification or an actual security need. Arrests are often carried out on youths protesting against Israeli armed forces who are protecting Jewish settlement areas that have been illegally appropriated from Palestinian families. The vast majority of arrests are for throwing stones which is considered an offence under section 212 of military order 1651. Children as young as 12 are taken into custody without warning. It is a practice that is completely contrary to the protection of children's rights and, indeed, human rights. It results in thousands of children under the age of 16 being taken into custody. This is unjustifiable. Although the maximum sentence for children of 12 to 13 years is six months, the penalty rises dramatically from the age of 14, when a child can face a maximum penalty of between ten and 20 years, depending on circumstances.

Another 22-page report conducted by UNICEF in March last year found that the ill-treatment of Palestinian minors held in Israeli military detention centres is widespread, systematic and institutionalised. It stated that most children confessed at the end of the interrogation, signing forms in Hebrew which they hardly understand. It also found that children had been held in solitary confinement for between two days and one month, before being taken to court or even following sentencing. During court hearings children were in leg chains and shackles and in most cases the principal evidence against the child is the child's own confession, in most cases extracted under duress during the interrogation.

A study conducted by Defence for Children International in the occupied Palestinian territories, showed that Palestinian children in Israeli prisons are being subjected to torture, sleep deprivation and being blindfolded. In contrast to their Israeli counterparts, Palestinian children do not have a right to be accompanied by their parents during questioning. According to Defence for Children International, in 96% of cases, children were interrogated alone and seldom informed of their rights, especially their rights against self-incrimination.

The Euro-Mid Observer for Human Rights also stated that at least 1,406 Palestinian children have been killed since 2000, including 263 children under the age of eight and 450 children under the age of 15. This was before the military onslaught on Gaza, which killed over 2,100 people. According to UN figures this included 519 children, 323 boys and 190 girls, 70% under the age of 12. This is the true face of Israel's occupation. We in Sinn Féin hope this motion improves the chances of a two-state solution and that Palestinian children can grow up in a safe and free Palestinian state.

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