Willie O'Dea (Limerick City, Fianna Fail)
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Question 7: To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade if he raised with the Israeli Government the recent violence in the Palestinian territories that resulted in fatalities; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17213/12]

Sandra McLellan (Cork East, Sinn Fein)
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Question 36: To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade his views on whether the recent acts of violence in Gaza which resulted in the death of 26 Palestinians and rocket attacks on Southern Israel were precipitated by Israel's assassination of Zuhir al-Qaisi and if he will call on the Israeli Government to cease these acts. [17222/12]

Eamon Gilmore (Dún Laoghaire, Labour)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 7 and 36 together.

I have been deeply concerned by the worrying rise in violent exchanges across the Gaza border in recent weeks and made this clear in a statement which I issued on 12 March. These exchanges have included not only Israeli air strikes against Gaza, in which 24 people are believed to have been killed, including five civilians, but also continuing and completely unjustifiable indiscriminate rocket and mortar attacks by militants against civilian targets in Israel. A measure of calm has returned following the conclusion of an Egyptian mediated cease-fire on 13 March but these events greatly inflame tensions and negatively impact the prospects for the resumption of substantive meaningful peace talks.

Since the conclusion of the Gaza conflict in January 2009, the use of military force between Gaza and Israel, in both directions, has considerably abated. Hamas has broadly refrained from rocket or mortar attacks into Israel, and has acted with some degree of success to restrict such attacks by other militant groups in Gaza.

The most recent attacks were carried out by militant Islamic groups in response to the targeted assassination of the militant, Zuhair al-Qaissi. Again, I condemn the utterly indiscriminate firing of rockets from Gaza into Israel and the resulting terror inflicted on the population of southern Israel. However, although I recognise that Israel has to take steps to prevent terrorist attacks against its civilian population, I do not believe the practice of targeted assassinations is justified or strengthens Israel's security. Nor can I condone the disproportionate use of military force by Israel in response to such events which results in large-scale civilian casualties.

I deplore and condemn all attacks against civilians. Both Israelis and Palestinians are entitled to live free of the fear of attack.

Seán Ó Fearghaíl (Kildare South, Fianna Fail)
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I will be brief, being conscious of the time constraints. I commend the Tánaiste on his response. I had a very interesting meeting yesterday with the Israeli Ambassador, His Excellency, Mr. Boaz Modai, and was struck by his absolute conviction that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is the man to work towards a solution to this intractable problem.

From his visit to the region in January, will the Tánaiste give his assessment of the process and his views on the kind of further facilitation or interventions that may be necessary to broker a peace deal? Has the issue of this most recent violence been raised with members of the Middle East Quartet?

Eamon Gilmore (Dún Laoghaire, Labour)
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When I visited the Middle East at the end of January I met Prime Minister Netanyahu and the Israeli Foreign Minister, Avigdor Liberman, on the Israeli side and President Mahmoud Abbas and Foreign Minister, Riyadh al-Maliki, on the Palestinian side. The talks in Amman had just commenced at that stage, namely, the attempt to get things moving along the lines of the Quartet framework. Both sides told me they were willing to engage in those talks and move them ahead.

I left the meeting with Prime Minister Netanyahu hoping there would be progress on the Israeli side and that some confidence-building measures would be announced which would enable President Abbas to proceed with talks and make some progress at that end. I am disappointed that has not happened. We continue to work through the European Union. Catherine Ashton has been in touch with both sides on a regular basis to try to get the Quartet formula moving forward again. I remain hopeful that may happen.

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn (Donegal North East, Sinn Fein)
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One of the concerns one has reading reports during and after the recent attacks by the Israeli Army is the real sense the army had targeted and killed a militant in Gaza. Forces within Gaza then launched missile attacks on south Israel. None of them were part of Hamas. At least ten people were killed, a good number of whom were civilians. The concern in the region is that this may have been an attempt to provoke Hamas and undermine the partnership it has developed with Fatah which is critical in terms of achieving the unity of the Palestinian people, creating and sustaining a two-state solution and guaranteeing the security of both Israel and Palestine for which we all hope and pray.

Does the Tánaiste believe the initial actions of the Israeli Army in targeting somebody like that were reckless and wrong?

Eamon Gilmore (Dún Laoghaire, Labour)
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I cannot speculate as to what was the motivation. The attacks in both directions - the terrorist attacks on Israel and the military attacks in the opposite direction - are wrong to the extent that 25 people are dead, many of them civilians. As has been said time out of number, substantive talks to get a settlement are needed. It is disappointing that the Quartet framework has not been progressed to date. Ireland will work actively through the European Union and United Nations to get those talks progressed.

Mick Wallace (Wexford, Independent)
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I agree wholeheartedly with the Tánaiste that strikes on both sides are to be regretted and are wrong. In the past five years, deaths on the Palestinian side outnumbered deaths on the Israeli side by over 100 to one. It is a pretty uneven fight at the moment. I find it odd that the Tánaiste referred to one attack as a terrorist attack and the other as military. People on both sides have been terrorised by the actions taken.

Eamon Gilmore (Dún Laoghaire, Labour)
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I have been pretty clear on the attacks from both sides. We want both to end and I am glad that, as a result of the Egyptian intervention, the outbreak of violence has ended. I hope that remains the case but there is an onus on people to get talks moving again. There must be a settlement and that is why Ireland continues to press at EU and UN levels to get things moving. It is deeply frustrating that what appeared to be an initial hopeful sign that meaningful talks would get under way has been put on the backburner.