Holly Cairns (Cork South West, Social Democrats) | Oireachtas source

At the weekend, 11 ministers in the Israeli Government attended a conference calling for Israeli settlement in the Gaza strip. Detailed maps were displayed which showed the areas of the Gaza strip where settlements would be established. Among the ministers to attend was the national security minister, Ben-Gvir, and the finance minister, Smotrich. This will not come as any surprise. Both men are far-right extremists who support the creation and expansion of illegal settlements. Ben-Gvir was appointed national security minister despite having convictions for incitement to racism and supporting a terrorist organisation. Smotrich had previously stated there is no such thing as the Palestinian people, and called for Palestinian towns in the West Bank to be erased.

On Thursday, when I asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs what action Ireland was taking, the only thing he could point to was advocating for a ban on illegal Israeli settlements.

Does the Taoiseach think the travel ban on settlers should include members of the Israeli Government and will the Taoiseach advocate for that at EU level?

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