Matt Carthy (Cavan-Monaghan, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

With due respect to the Minister of State, he is asking me to do his job for him. He talks about the interactions with the Department of Foreign Affairs. That Department is obliged under its own criteria to consider "Respect for human rights in the country of final destination as well as respect by that country of international humanitarian law". How the hell can we be allowing any licence for exports going to Israel to be approved, considering that it is the official position of this House and this Government that Israel is involved in de facto annexation in the West Bank, when the Government has finally agreed to intervene in the International Court of Justice case in respect of a charge of genocide against Israel, when we have asked the EU to consider the human rights clauses within the EU-Israel trade association agreement and when a former Taoiseach described Israel's onslaught on Gaza as approaching revenge? Does the Minister of State not agree, considering the criteria in respect of human rights and the adherence to international humanitarian law, that we should not be sending a single product that could have a military use to the State of Israel while it continues to be in gross violation of international law?

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