Keith Swanick (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

One image or storyline often defines a conflict or tragedy. For example, we often think of the iconic image of nine year old Kim Phuc, the girl pictured naked as she fled horrific violence in south Vietnam in 1972. In the midst of the carnage and the suffering she experienced as a result of severe burns on her back, there can seem to be no hope at times. Seventeen surgical procedures were performed during her 14-month stay in hospital. She survived and today lives with her husband and two children in Toronto. She also established the KIM Foundation in the United States, with the aim of providing medical and psychological assistance for children of war.

Much closer to home, we have seen the images of a three year old Syrian boy, Alan Kurdi, who perished in the Mediterranean and was washed ashore in Turkey in September 2015. As a father of a young boy, these images had a profound impact on me. In the midst of the terror being experienced by fleeing Syrian refugees, one heart warming story brought a smile to my face. Ahmed Soda, an 11 year old Syrian refugee, recently helped Patrick Sarsfields GAA Club win its first Antrim juvenile hurling title in many years. Ahmed and his family who are originally from Aleppo arrived in Belfast last December.

The crisis in Syria, specifically the humanitarian catastrophe in Aleppo, has been mentioned by many Senators. Last week, for example, the issue was raised by Senator Ray Butler. The Fianna Fáil Party spokesman in the Dáil, Deputy Darragh O'Brien, has been forthright in his condemnation of recent attacks on United Nations and Red Crescent convoys. I echo this condemnation and despair when I see media reports of medical and United Nations facilities being targeted and destroyed. In this context, I wholeheartedly support the comments of the Taoiseach who wants Ireland to introduce a Naval Service hospital ship to deal with global emergencies. It is perhaps fitting that he made this pronouncement earlier this week while launching a new Naval Service patrol vessel, the LE William Butler Yeats, named after a former Senator who served in the House in the 1920s. The introduction of a Naval Service hospital ship to deal with global emergencies would be a practical response to ongoing humanitarian catastrophes throughout the world.

The incredible work of the Naval Service and the crews of the LE James Joyce, LE Róisín, LE Eithne, LE Niamhand LE Samuel Beckett is an inspiration to us all. The trauma Naval Service officers will have encountered is hard to comprehend. As a medic working on the west coast, I regularly liaise closely with the Irish Coast Guard and experience at first hand its members' bravery and commitment to serving the public while putting their lives in danger. They face danger on every call-out. The crews of Naval Service vessels working in the Mediterranean deal with hundreds of traumatic scenarios daily.

The image of young Ahmed Soda with his hurley among friends in west Belfast provides an important counter-balance to the awfulness unfolding in his home city and country. This is what we must all focus on as we recommit to Ireland playing its part in dealing with the humanitarian crisis unfolding in the Middle East and the Mediterranean.