Catherine Connolly (Galway West, Independent) | Oireachtas source

The incessant bombardment of civilians in Gaza continues, yet the Taoiseach tells us that he cannot go out on a limb and he has to wait for a European decision - a Europe that has lost its moral compass. The slaughter of the Palestinian people continues with the full collusion and active support of the US and Britain.

This week, we all received a letter from Doctors Without Borders. It tells us the situation in Gaza is deteriorating even further. Intensive aerial and ground attacks by Israeli forces are continuing at a relentless pace. Some 16,250 people have died in two months. Women and children make up 70% of the death toll, yet the Taoiseach tells us that he will not or cannot go out on a limb. That is exactly what he needs to do. He needs to lead, and he needs to lead in our name. Seventy per cent of the 16,250 people slaughtered are women and children.

Doctors Without Borders states:

Medical staff, including our own, are utterly exhausted and in despair. They have had to amputate limbs from children suffering from severe burns without anaesthesia or sterilised surgical tools. Due to forcible evacuations by Israeli soldiers, some doctors have had to leave patients behind after facing the unimaginable choice between their lives or those of their patients.

Doctors without Borders tell us that Israel is continuing its offensive with the political cover provided by many countries, and this needs to stop, but the Taoiseach tells us that he cannot go out on a limb.

The UN emergency relief co-ordinator, Martin Griffiths, said yesterday that nowhere is safe in Gaza, not hospitals, not shelters, not refugee camps, and no one is safe, not children, not health workers, not humanitarians, while we are looking forward to Christmas in this country. Such blatant disregard for basic humanity must stop. Mr. Griffiths continued by stating “This is an apocalyptic situation now, because these are the remnants of a [proud] nation being driven into a pocket in the south.”

Yesterday, the World Food Programme said: “The resumption of hostilities in Gaza will only intensify the catastrophic hunger crisis that already threatens to overwhelm the civilian population.” Yet we stand idly by.

Some 1.7 million people have been internally displaced. As of 5 December, 63 journalists and media workers have been killed, 130 UNRWA staff have been killed, 11 journalists were reported injured, three reported missing and 19 reported arrested. I could go on with those statistics but I think the point has been made. We just need to look at our screens.

We look at what the Taoiseach is saying and the condemnation of the attack on 7 October, which I joined without hesitation. However, that is not when the history of what is happening in Gaza started. That was not ground zero. That was the culmination of a whole history where Gaza or Palestine has been subjected to a siege for at least 17 years and it was utterly reliant on up to 500 trucks per day coming in. In parallel with that, we have the attacks on people in the West Bank. Some 249 Palestinians, including 65 children, have been killed in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, since 7 October, and still we stand idly by. Already, 2023 is the deadliest year for Palestinians in the West Bank since casualties began to be counted in 2005.

What can we do? We can use our voice to call for an immediate, permanent and sustainable ceasefire. Europe is backing war, not peace, and we are waiting for it to come to its senses. The "disproportionate" response by Israel does not capture the slaughter that it is carrying out in Gaza – “disproportionate” does not come anywhere near it. The Government could recognise what it promised in the programme for Government, which was to recognise the state of Palestine. Of course, the two Bills that are languishing somewhere, namely, the occupied territories Bill and the Illegal Israeli Settlements Divestment Bill, could be enacted and put into law.

I am almost finished but, with regard to Shannon, the least we could do is stop the warplanes going through Shannon or, at the very least, inspect them.

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