Micheál Martin (Cork South-Central, Fianna Fail)

What is happening in Gaza is absolutely appalling. I noted a quote earlier from a Dr. Potokar in Gaza who said that "if Cambodia was the killing fields, then Gaza now is the slaughterhouse." What is happening to innocent civilians in Gaza is beyond any moral compass, particularly the children who are being slaughtered and the children who are starving. It needs to come to an end.

The weaponisation of aid is a war crime and I said that. It is very regrettable that the Deputy says the Irish Government is funding genocide. I cannot really comprehend why the Deputy says things like that. I argue the Deputy does it for politics but it smacks of that only. It lacks sincerity.

The Central Bank operates under European regulations. It does not have the authority to do what the Deputy says it should do. It is fundamentally wrong to take the tactics the Deputy is taking.

See this speech in context