Catherine Connolly (Galway West, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I am on record for unreservedly condemning the Hamas attack. Sadaka – The Ireland Palestine Alliance has stated unreservedly: "The international community has rightly condemned the killing of Israeli citizens and the taking of others as hostages." It goes on to make a number of other points, stating:

According to UNRWA, nothing has been allowed into Gaza for the last eleven days. A humanitarian corridor must be opened

[...]The people of Gaza must not be removed from Gaza to the Sinai. Most Gazans are already refugees ...

It makes ten points, which are well worth reading. Some of these have been reinforced by the Tánaiste, who spoke about the extra funding he will give to Palestine. I welcome that.

The Tánaiste stated: "We cannot forget that 80% of the Palestinian population in Gaza is dependent on international assistance for basic humanitarian and human needs." Quite clearly, we must ask the question as to how this has happened. I do not have time to go into the history of the matter, but the Tánaiste has acknowledged that 80% of the population has been kept in a complete state of deprivation and poverty and is utterly helpless and dependent. As a result of that, more than a week ago we got the Hamas attack and now Israel has gone in.

We should join together because most of us are in agreement. I would say nearly everyone in the Dáil is in agreement that what Hamas did was wrong and, equally, what Israel has done and is doing is totally wrong. That should be contemplated by the motion. Unfortunately, it is not. I put a very simple amendment, that we should also not express our concern but condemn the actions of Israel because they are clearly not in keeping with international law. Even that simple two-sentence amendment was not acceptable to the Government.

As quickly as I can, I will go through some facts. This afternoon, Israel bombed the mosque in Gaza killing displaced people who had fled north Gaza seeking shelter. That is completely and utterly not allowed under the Geneva Convention. The church in Jerusalem, which manages the hospital, has announced it received three phone warnings from the Israeli occupation forces that they would strike the Baptist hospital before they did so. Following the bombing of the hospital in Gaza yesterday evening, with more than 500 people - patients, doctors and those sheltering - dead, Ursula von der Leyen tweeted: "Hamas terror is now bringing immense suffering to the Palestinian people." Dr. von der Leyen doubled down on the statement that Israel has a right to defend itself. This is the same woman who told us that the Israelis made the desert bloom.

Calls for humanitarian corridors are very welcome. These corridors must be provided, but we need peace. We need a complete cessation of the violence.

When we talk about understanding the feelings of Israeli people - which I do - and what was perpetrated on civilians and hostages taken, let me put their response in context. What they are seeking is not justice, fairness or a two-state solution but, straight from the Bible, revenge. In case people are in any doubt about that, I will finish with a few quotations. The Israeli defence minister stated, “We are fighting human animals and we act accordingly " and "we will eliminate everything.”; the Israeli Prime Minister said: "This is a struggle between the children of light and the children of darkness, between humanity and the law of the jungle." An Israeli army spokesperson stated: “The emphasis [is] on damage and not on accuracy.” Israel’s President Herzog stated: "It's an entire nation out there that is responsible. The rhetoric about civilians not being aware or involved is absolutely untrue." A member of the Israeli Parliament said: "I urge you to do everything and use doomsday weapons fearlessly against our enemies." Another stated: "Right now, one goal: Nakba! A Nakba that will overshadow the [one] of 1948.". A former Israeli Prime Minister said: "I am not going to feed electricity or water to my enemies." and "We’re fighting Nazis". The final quote is from the Israeli Minister of National Security, who stated: "As long as Hamas does not release the hostages in its hands, the only thing that needs to enter Gaza are hundreds of tons of explosives from the Air Force, not an ounce of humanitarian aid."

As we speak, the Americans are sending warplanes, warships and the war industry to be there with Israel. They are building up.

Hamas is not the target here. There are bigger targets in question here. We need to use the voice we have. We are one of the few neutral countries in the world. That makes us distinct. It builds on our experience. We stand on our integrity and we speak truth to power and say, "Israel, what you are doing is vengeful and wrong".

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