Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance)
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15. To ask the Taoiseach to report on any recent discussions he has had with other world leaders in connection with the ongoing Israeli-Palestinian conflict. [22692/24]

Paul Murphy (Dublin South West, RISE)
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16. To ask the Taoiseach to report on any recent discussions he has had with other world leaders in connection with the ongoing Israeli-Palestinian conflict. [22694/24]

Bríd Smith (Dublin South Central, People Before Profit Alliance)
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17. To ask the Taoiseach to report on any recent discussions he has had with other world leaders in connection with the ongoing Israeli-Palestinian conflict. [22697/24]

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 14 to 17, inclusive, together.

As the House will be aware, the ongoing conflict in Gaza and the situation in the Middle East is of great international concern. The phrase "ongoing conflict" does not in any way capture the scale of the humanitarian catastrophe we are now seeing in Gaza. Since my election as Taoiseach, I have had many discussions on the situation with my international counterparts.

The issue was discussed at the special meeting of the European Council in April, when leaders committed to working with partners to end the conflict in Gaza without delay and called for an immediate ceasefire, the release of all hostages and full, rapid and unhindered access to humanitarian aid at scale. We also discussed the need to avoid escalation of tensions in the region, notably in Lebanon. We confirmed our determination to support the most vulnerable people in Lebanon, including refugees, internally displaced persons and host communities in need.

While at the European Council, I took the opportunity to engage a number of my counterparts in the margins of the meeting, including on the question of recognition of Palestine.

I have also engaged extensively on the subject in my bilateral engagements, including my meetings with the President of the European Parliament, Roberta Metsola, and President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, in Brussels on 11 April. In my meeting with President von der Leyen, in addition to discussing the very concerning current situation, I raised the letter that the Prime Minister of Spain, Pedro Sánchez, and the former Taoiseach had written to her, asking for a review of Israel’s obligations under the EU-Israel association agreement. It remains my expectation that the Commission should carry forward a review. That remains the position of Ireland and I reiterated it to the President of the Commission. It is very much my view as well.

The situation in the Middle East was the main topic of discussion in my meeting with Prime Minister of Spain, Pedro Sánchez, when I hosted him here in Dublin on 12 April. We have remained in close contact in recent weeks, including on the question of recognition of Palestine. Today, Ireland, Norway and Spain have taken the decision in lockstep to recognise the state of Palestine. Last week I spoke specifically about the Middle East in calls with the Prime Minister of Slovenia, Robert Golob; King Abdullah of Jordan; the Prime Minister of Norway, Jonas Gahr Støre; and the President of Israel, Isaac Herzog. The issue also came up in my call last week with the Prime Minister of Australia, Anthony Albanese. In all my conversations I have made clear the Government’s wish to see an immediate ceasefire, the immediate and unconditional release of hostages and urgent and unhindered access for humanitarian aid into Gaza. I have also been very clear in all my calls about Ireland's wish to recognise the state of Palestine and our belief that a two-state solution is essential to peace and stability in the region. These extensive contacts facilitated the announcement by the Government today with our partners in Spain and Norway that we are recognising the state of Palestine. With this announcement, I am confident that further countries will join us in taking this important step in the coming weeks. I encourage them to do so.

In my call with the King of Jordan, he briefed me on regional efforts to create a context for peace, as well as the considerable and commendable role Jordan is playing in providing humanitarian relief. In my conversation with President Herzog, I set out clearly the Government’s position on Gaza, including our deep concern about the potential for catastrophe in Rafah. I expressed our view that peace and security for Israel and Palestine can only be built on a two-state solution, and outlined to the Israeli President our intention to recognise the state of Palestine. I also made clear Ireland’s abhorrence of Hamas and Ireland’s support for the immediate and unconditional release of hostages. The situation in the Middle East has also come up in conversations I have had with other leaders, including President Zelenskyy of Ukraine and the British Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak. I will continue to avail of every possible opportunity to call for an immediate ceasefire and to express our belief that long-term peace and security for the people of Palestine and the people of Israel can only be achieved through a two-state solution, with an Israeli and a Palestinian state living side by side together.

Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance)
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The people of this country in their majority have long recognised Palestine. Finally, the Government has caught up with the people. It is a pity it has taken seven months of a genocidal massacre in Gaza and decades of ethnic cleansing by Israel, illegal occupation, the siege of Gaza and brutal suppression of Palestinian rights, but it is a step forward. It will mean very little if it is just symbolic. It has to be accompanied by sanctions to stop the genocide and by a recognition that a state that commits genocide in Gaza, a state that is based on apartheid and on decades of ethnic cleansing, is not a normal state. It needs to be denormalised and dismantled. The Taoiseach asked earlier what we meant when we spoke about this. I would like to ask him if apartheid has any place in the world. Does he put a free and liberated Palestine beside an apartheid State of Israel? That is what two states means. I say apartheid has no place in the world. A free and liberated Palestine would give equality, freedom and self-determination to everybody, regardless of whether they were Muslim, Jewish, Christian or of no religion. In respect of anywhere else in the world, that is what the Taoiseach would probably argue for too. Yet when it comes to Palestine, we argue for apartheid-type partition.

If it is just symbolic and we keep making reference to that, Israel is not going to stop. It is absolutely clear. They are unapologetic about the genocide. They are unapologetic about apartheid. The United States are standing behind them, cheering them on, and indeed even threatening the International Criminal Court for calling for prosecutions against this state. The world has to recognise that Israel is a rogue regime like apartheid South Africa. That apartheid system and the occupation have to be dismantled if we want peace.

Paul Murphy (Dublin South West, RISE)
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Two days ago, the International Criminal Court prosecutor, Karim Khan announced that he was pursuing arrest warrants against Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, and the Minister for Defence, Yoav Gallant, for a range of war crimes. One of the war crimes he was seeking the arrest warrant for was that of starvation of civilians as a method of warfare. That is correct, in my opinion. It therefore is horrifying that the Israeli ambassador, the representative of a regime that is currently engaged in the war crime of starvation of civilians as a method of warfare, was invited to the national Famine commemoration. It was a political decision to invite the representative of this regime because a political decision was made not to invite the Russian ambassador, for example. I would like the Taoiseach to explain to us how it is appropriate in any sense to have a representative of such a genocidal regime, which is implementing starvation on the people of Gaza as we speak, present at an event to commemorate the Famine here. It is absolutely outrageous and boggles the mind as to how it was proceeded with.

I welcome the recognition of the state of Palestine that the Government is going to engage in. It is thanks to the movement from below. It was in the programme for Government of the last Government but was not implemented. People power of this country has demanded it. It needs to be matched with actions against Israel. It is a very concrete thing. The Israeli ambassador has now been withdrawn for discussions. The Taoiseach should say she is not welcome back. We do not want the Israeli ambassador back. The Irish ambassador to Israel is being summoned to meet with Netanyahu or the foreign minister or whoever. I do not think we should be playing this game. We should say we are expelling the Israeli ambassador from Ireland. That would also have enormous public support in this country.

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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The first thing I want to say, and I am very conscious of it on a day like today, but it is important to say this, is that what happened on 7 October was an horrific terrorist attack. It was a massacre of people at a music festival. We have seen people who were killed, assaulted, raped, taken hostage, including children, including an Irish-Israeli girl. We should never forget that, brush over it or jump over it. The impact that had on the people of Israel, on their sense of security, should never be underestimated.

Countries have a right to defend themselves, but what we have seen happen - I have said this consistently over a significant period - has gone from being anything like the right of a country to defend itself to what looks like revenge, to what is a war on children and on to what has been catastrophic in terms of its impact on civilians and civilian infrastructure. We are now seeing people starving and, in many ways, being starved as a result of an inability or refusal to allow humanitarian aid access into Gaza in any sort of way of scale that is required.

Along with the leaders in of the coalition Government, I wanted us to recognise the state of Palestine today because it is true this has been in programmes for Government before and these, including this one, have generally said it would be recognised as part of a peace process to bring about a two-state solution. In many ways, that peace process or a sustainable, just peace seem farther away than ever before. In consultation with Spain, Norway and others, we believed it was important to keep the destination of a two-state solution alive and that we would recognise the state of Palestine today to create some degree of positive momentum and some degree of hope. I expect other countries to follow suit.

We have been clear that we recognise the 1967 borders, but there will have to be a peace process. There will have to be a political process to bring about peace in the region. We are a long way from the time when the Oslo Accords took place, some 30 years ago now. We need the violence to stop, an immediate ceasefire, the hostages to be released unconditionally, humanitarian aid to flow and a political process. People on this island, and, indeed, on these islands, know better than most that the only way you end violence and provide people with security and peace is, ultimately, through a political process.

In the context of the Israeli ambassador's attendance at our national day of commemoration, rather than fixating on her attendance there, I was more concerned as to the message I delivered in her presence calling out clearly what I believe are the actions of Israel in inflicting starvation on people in Gaza, including children, and the devastating humanitarian consequences that will continue to have.

Cormac Devlin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Taoiseach for that response. A little over seven minutes are left. There are three Deputies here.

Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance)
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Is it seven minutes or two minutes?

Cormac Devlin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)
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Sorry, we have 45 minutes for this slot collectively. Seven minutes are left and three Deputies are in the Chamber now. Do they wish to take the remaining questions?

Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance)
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We probably would not have enough time.

Cormac Devlin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)
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No, because the questions would all have to include a response from the Taoiseach as well. That concludes this session.