Paschal Mooney (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I firmly believe that the only solution to the Middle East problem between Israel and Palestine is a two-nation formula. I utterly and completely condemn the actions of the IDF on many occasions, particularly in the context of the massacres that took place in the West Bank and Palestine last year. My credibility in that regard should not be questioned in any way. It is right and proper that whenever there are issues to be raised in respect of both sides, a balance should be struck. I sometimes fear that there is not a complete balance in this House when it comes to issues relating to the relationship between Israel and Palestine. I raise this matter because I am sure people on all sides will utterly condemn this terrible attack. Can Members imagine an innocent couple with two of their children in the back of the car driving along a road and then being stopped and shot dead in front of those children? It is terrible and it is an indication, perhaps, of the sad descent into violence that has happened in terms of the relationship between Israel and Palestine.All one can do is pray and hope. I am sure the Leader will convey to the Minister, Deputy Charles Flanagan, that we in Ireland will continue to promote peace between both factions. I have always admired the Government’s stance of supporting the two-state solution to the Israel-Palestinian problem. In the past, my party’s spokesperson on foreign affairs, Deputy Brendan Smith, has highlighted, and will continue to do so in the future, the need to strike a balance and that, as a country which has its own colonial history, we do not condemn one side without taking account of the other.