Joan Collins (Dublin South Central, Independents 4 Change) | Oireachtas source

I welcome last week's provisional ruling by the International Court of Justice ordering Israel to take all measures to prevent a genocide. It has been clear from the start of Israel's assault on Gaza that it has instead been taking all measures to ensure a genocide. We have failed in our moral and legal obligation to do anything to stop it. The news of the ICJ case has been dampened by the news that several countries, led by the US and UK, will be withdrawing funding from UNRWA. This is a clear attack on one of the most important aid agencies working with Palestinian refugees and those facing the Israeli onslaught in Gaza. This unilateral action was followed by an announcement from the European Commission that it too will be withdrawing aid from UNRWA. This is an absolute disgrace and is complicity in the crimes Israel is committing. It is clear retaliation to the ICJ's ruling last week. Israel has alleged that 12 workers in UNRWA were involved in the horrific attack on the Israeli people on 7 October. UNRWA is investigating and if anybody was involved it will deal with it.

I applaud the clear intent of the Irish Government and the Tánaiste to continue funding UNRWA. I also welcome the Government's call for a ceasefire now. In reaction to an order to take all actions possible to prevent a genocide, the US, UK and the European Commission took the action to see more Palestinians killed, more Palestinians die from hunger and thirst, and more Palestinians die from a lack of access to basic medicines. UNRWA is at the forefront of preventing this genocide. It has delivered to Gazan civilians 12,900 tonnes of flour, 4.7 million cans of protein-based food, food to 323,000 families outside the UNRWA shelters, 19,000,000 l of water, and medicines and medical supplies to a total value of more than $6.2 million. Across the Middle East, UNRWA is responsible for the education of more than 543,000 children. It provides $1.9 million in healthcare, more than 400,000 are supported by its social safety net programmes and it has 5.9 million refugees living under protection of the mandate. I know the Government will go to the US for St. Patrick's Day. I do not believe it should. However, if they go, I ask the Tánaiste and Taoiseach to argue with the US President to reinstate the funding to UNRWA and to stop funding military aid to Israel.

This attack on UNRWA is an attack on the right to live and survive of all Palestinians. It is another pillar in the ongoing genocide in Gaza and the ethnic cleansing of all Palestinians from Palestine. Since the beginning of its assault, Israel has systematically targeted both Gaza's ability to survive and its ability to show the world what is happening. More than 117 journalists and media workers have been killed. The Committee to Protect Journalists has called this the deadliest conflict for journalists since it began recording data, and it is launching investigations into the deliberate targeting of journalists, their homes, families and workplaces. More than 65% of Gaza's hospitals are no longer operational. Last week saw the Israeli assault on Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis, an area formally declared a safe zone. Today we have seen an assault on the Ibn Sina Hospital in Jenin in the occupied West Bank, by Israeli soldiers disguised as nurses and doctors. At the start of this conflict we argued about whether Israel should ever target a hospital. It is now attacking hospitals almost every day. These attacks on hospitals, journalists, and now aid agencies - and not just the targeting of civilians - constitute systematic destruction of Gaza's ability to report, record, or count the genocide being inflicted on it. If they target aid agencies on the ground, how will we know how many people are starving or suffering from thirst and disease? If they kill journalists, who will get the information on what Israel is doing? If there are no hospitals, doctors or nurses left, who will count the bodies?

We need action from the Government. It needs to intervene in this case, outline the clear crimes Israel has committed, support the ICJ and defend it and international law from any attack against it, take all necessary actions to ensure Israel complies with the provisional measures of this case, and support a state-led campaign of boycott, divestment and sanctions against Israel until we have a meaningful ceasefire.

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