Catherine Murphy (Kildare North, Social Democrats) | Oireachtas source

The events of 7 October and the response in recent weeks have focused the world's attention on Israel, Gaza and the West Bank. The crimes Hamas inflicted on Israel on 7 October were utterly appalling and I have no hesitation in condemning those atrocities. The crimes were of such magnitude that they have left the people of Israel traumatised and frightened for their safety, lives and future. The atrocities have been compounded by the taking of hostages, most of whom continue to be held. Our motion calls for their release. I am thinking of Emily Hand in making this call.

While Israel has every right to defend itself, what we are seeing in Gaza goes beyond that. The scale of the slaughter of the civilian population cannot be justified. There is no safe place in Gaza and many are making the perilous journey from north to south in the Gaza Strip. Many are moving on foot and some are injured, and there are many children and old people among them, yet no provision is being made to meet their needs. Only small convoys are permitted to enter with food, water and medical supplies, but not fuel. The absence of adequate shelter and people living without proper sanitation open up the risk of infection spreading, adding to the horrendous death toll.

We are now seeing hospital and healthcare facilities on the front line. Innocent children are on the front line. Thousands have been slaughtered and premature babies are dying. Gaza is now a graveyard for children. Universities and schools are on the front line. A heavily populated refugee camp is on the front line. The UN personnel are on the front line, and more than 100 have been killed so far. Journalists and media workers are on the front line, and dozens have been killed over the past month. Almost 200 healthcare workers have been killed, having paid the ultimate price for looking after their patients.

I cannot get out of my head a social media post by a young father exiting a hospital in Gaza. He said that when you have to exit the hospital with your children in plastic bags, humanity is dead, values are dead and the UN is dead. This is beyond shameful. The international community, including the most powerful jurisdictions in the world – the US, Canada, the UK and the EU – cannot stand by. Many of these countries have signed up to the International Criminal Court. To be fair to our Taoiseach, his words were strong, implying that what we are seeing now is revenge. He called that out. We need to go beyond words and impose actions to stop this carnage, and that means a ceasefire.

The Geneva Conventions were adopted just four years after the end of the Second World War. The fourth of the conventions relates to the protection of civilians in occupied territories such as Gaza. There are very well-defined protocols in addition to the convention, such as Article 48, which sets the following basic rule, "In order to ensure respect for and protection of the civilian population and civilian objects, the Parties to the conflict shall at all times distinguish between the civilian population and combatants and between civilian objects and military objectives and accordingly shall direct their operations only against military objectives." To avoid any doubt, Article 50.2 states, "The civilian population comprises all persons who are civilians." Article 50.3 states, "The presence within the civilian population of individuals who do not come within the definition of civilians does not deprive the population of its civilian character." Article 52.3, on civilian objects, states, "In case of doubt whether an object which is normally dedicated to civilian purposes, such as a place of worship, a house or other dwelling or a school, is being used to make an effective contribution to military action, it shall be presumed not to be so used." Civilian objects obviously include hospitals and healthcare facilities.

The International Criminal Court deals with breaches. The most serious crimes are termed "grave breaches", and a legal definition of a war crime is provided. A grave breach of the fourth convention includes wilfully causing great suffering or serious injury to body or health. There can be no doubt that what is occurring is happening on an industrial scale.

Karim Khan, King's Counsel and prosecutor at the International Criminal Court, wrote in The Guardian:

We cannot accept that the brutal nature of war is some kind of fait accompli ... [T]here are laws that govern the conduct of these hostilities. There is no blank cheque, even in war.

Israel was one of the country's that were vocal on the need to create the International Criminal Court, and on 31 December 2008 it signed the Statute of the International Criminal Court. That has to mean something. The US is one of Israel's strongest supporters, committed to funding and arming its defence, but this is going beyond defence. It was appalling to hear the US President, Mr. Biden, say he hopes for less intrusive action on a hospital. Hospitals should be beyond attack. Despite the US support, the US envoy, Mr. Antony Blinken, came back from his most recent visit empty-handed. What will be the consequences that will change Israel's behaviour?

As has been said, we did not table this motion likely. We sincerely believe there have to be consequences. Otherwise, we will continue to see parents carrying their children out of hospital in plastic bags. There has to be humanity and value, and the UN has to have real power.

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