Emer Higgins (Dublin Mid West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

As we stand here in this Chamber, innocent civilians are dying in Gaza and almost 200 innocent hostages taken in Israel continue to be held against their will.

The people of Palestine have lived under occupation for decades upon decades. I visited Palestine and I have seen that myself in areas like Hebron, Jerusalem, Bethlehem, Ramallah and Kulandia. I have seen how Israeli soldiers treat people there in their own land. However, nothing, and I mean nothing, excuses the attacks Hamas carried out on innocent civilians at a music festival in Israel last week. Nothing excuses the taking of civilian hostages. That has led to an escalation of violence and now 4,200 people are dead, and more than 1 million people have been displaced. Just imagine that for a second. They have nowhere to run in the face of a potential ground invasion by Israeli forces. They have nowhere to shelter from bombs raining down on their city and no food, power or water.

Where does this path of destruction lead to? It leads to the potential destabilisation of the Middle East, and that is not a world in which any of us wants to live. That is why we need international leadership to get us on to a path of peace rather than bloodshed. We need to say "stop" - stop this escalation, stop holding hostages and stop bombing. That means Israel needs to turn the water and power back on in Gaza and let supplies in. It means Hamas needs to release the hostages being held and it means that both Israel and Hamas need to agree to a ceasefire. The only way to achieve that is through negotiation and dialogue. International peacebrokers must stand up and get involved. They must independently verify intelligence around the hospital strike because as that blame game of who was behind it plays out on our air waves, more people are dying. As we wait on progress to happen and for peace to be negotiated, more blood is being shed and more lives are being lost. That is why international leadership, and Ireland is leading the way in that regard, is needed now more than ever. I wish to take this opportunity to give my deepest condolences to all those who are grieving at this time. I wish the best to everyone working on the ground in the region.

See this speech in context