David Maxwell (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)
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I wish to advise the House that the Ceann Comhairle has agreed to a request from Deputy Cathal Crowe to make a personal explanation. I call Deputy Crowe.

Cathal Crowe (Clare, Fianna Fail)
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I wish to clarify a speech I made yesterday in the Dáil, correct the Dáil record and apologise profusely to anyone who may have been offended by my comments. The speech I made was during the debate this House had on Gaza. I was speaking without a scripted speech and instead using a series of bullet points. I began by stating that the Israeli eye-for-an-eye approach has been reprehensible and that the bombing of hospitals, schools and tents alongside the killing of babies, including newborn babies in hospitals amounts to genocide and ethnic cleansing. I then wanted to make the point that brutal, bad and all as the British armed forces have been on this island for a very long time, they never resorted to sending over the Royal Air Force, tanks and missiles to pummel Irish cities. I wanted to convey the magnitude and the visceral hatred which has been behind the Israel Defense Forces' actions in Gaza. I also wanted to convey the huge disproportionality the Israeli state has adopted following the reprehensible Hamas attack on 7 October 2023. Regrettably, speaking largely off the cuff, I clumsily and wrongly stated that they “never retaliated by bombing or shooting the civilian population of Ireland.” Let me be clear. It was not my intention to say this. I did not realise how woeful all of that sounded until late last night when I received the transcript of what I actually said. It was a genuine slip-up on my part, but it was wrong. I wish to unequivocally and profusely apologise.

I studied history in college and taught history in the classroom. I am a republican. Many Members will remember the boycott I led in early 2020 to oppose a planned State commemoration of the Royal Irish Constabulary. I know that the British armed forces have been involved in many heinous attacks on Irish people historically, including Bloody Sunday in Croke Park in 1920, the massacre of 26 civilians in Derry’s Bogside in 1972 and the countless other actions in recent history and further back for which they are responsible. My family also suffered at the hands of British military in the past.

I make this apology entirely of my own volition, and it is genuine. My apology is to the victims of British state terror and atrocities. My apology is also to those who care about Irish history and the accuracy with which it should be conveyed. I want to see a united Ireland, and I yearn for the day when there are no more British military personnel on this island. I want to see continued peace in our nation in accordance with the Good Friday Agreement. The next time I speak on any of these matters, I will use a better prepared speaking note that accurately conveys what I wish to say rather than speaking off the cuff and causing unintentional hurt and offence.

I ask Members to please accept the bona fides of what I am saying. I made a mistake. I was wrong and I apologise. Those who know me a long time know my interest in history, republicanism and campaigns for justice for all who have suffered. The focus of yesterday’s debate was Gaza, and we need to get back to that. While a lot has been done by the Irish Government, I feel that the international community could do more. I will continue my personal efforts in the Dáil to speak up and stand up for the people who suffering unimaginably in Gaza.