Séamus McGrath (Cork South-Central, Fianna Fail)

I thank the Minister for being here to facilitate the debate on the Middle East. All of us in the House can agree on how horrified we are by what we are seeing on our televisions day in, day out in terms of the atrocities that are taking place in the Middle East. The massacre of human life is absolutely atrocious. A number of years ago we would not have expected to witness this in the year 2025. We had hoped the world had matured to a point whereby this type of hard military action would not be taking place.

Obviously, the only way forward is discussion, negotiation and reaching a ceasefire to allow room and scope for a proper discussion and a long-term settlement to be put in place. I by no means underestimate the task involved. The problems in the Middle East, in particular Gaza and the West Bank, are decades old and there are deep rooted and very entrenched views, but we have to find a solution. Ireland can speak loudly on that issue because we had our own issues on this island. Thankfully, we managed to navigate our way through a peace process which has endured and lasted. In that sense, it gives us a sense of authority to speak on this issue.

As a country, we propose a two-state solution, which is the only way forward as far as I am concerned. As I said, we have an authority to speak on that. It is only through discussion and agreement that we will find an ultimate solution. There has been criticism of Ireland's position to the effect that we are not strong enough. A previous speaker mentioned the scores of emails that we are receiving from constituents. I fully understand that as a TD. The vast majority come from a good place and are heartfelt and genuine. People, like ourselves, are horrified by what they are seeing day in, day out. They are reaching out to their public representatives, which is what people do in a democracy. We all fully accept and understand that. Like others, I have received emails from people who ask how we can let this happen. I ask myself how we can stop this. That is a question that we, as public representative, need to ask ourselves.

Ireland has a choice to make. Do we remain a strong voice in the large powerful block that is the European Union and try to bring about progress in that forum or do we stand apart, become an outlier, be more extreme in our views and lose the powerful voice we have within the European Union? Staying in the European Union and being a strong voice is a choice because there are voices and views on Europe that are very different from ours. Other countries take a different position and have a different stance. That is why we as a country need to be strong and stay within the European Union so that our voice is heard.

Becoming an outlier and being outside the tent as a small country on the periphery of Europe will not contribute anything to a solution. We can take a stand and make ourselves feel better about what we have done on various issues, but if we want to make a meaningful difference, something we have done in Europe, we have to remain within the European family and try to make progress in that way and through that forum.

Ireland, as a whole, has been very strong in our position on the Middle East. Ireland has provided over €88 million in support to the people of Palestine since January 2023, which is a significant sum of money for a small nation such as ours. More than €75 million has been provided since October 2023. Ireland has provided €20 million in core support to UNRWA this year alone, which brings our support to €58 million since 2023. In May 2024, Ireland recognised the State of Palestine, along with Spain, in the European Union, which was a very brave decision for us to take. We have been strong in our support of the South African case in the International Court of Justice. In 2024, we facilitated the evacuation of up to 36 children from Gaza for treatment and care. All of these measures are very important.

The Palestinian authorities praised Ireland for the position we are taking. From some of the correspondence I have received, one would think we were at the other end. We are not. The Palestinian authorities have praised us. Israel and its associates have been highly critical of Ireland in terms of the position we have taken on these issues.

It is about staying the course in terms of our position in Europe, doing everything we possibly can to bring about a long lasting settlement and working the diplomatic and international channels. I again repeat that Ireland has a strong position and a lot of authority in respect of a peace process and trying to bring about an ultimate solution. I urge our political leaders, despite everything I have said, to be as strong as they possibly can when they meet their European colleagues and counterparts at various meetings and engagements and interactions across Europe and beyond. I ask that they be as strong as possible in their voice of support for a proper settlement and bring about what is needed to stop the carnage we are seeing day in, day out and the unfortunate massacre of men, women and children on a daily basis. It is simply not good enough in the world we are living in today. Surely working together collectively we can end this as soon as possible.

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