Barry Ward (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister of State. We have had an important discussion. What is extraordinary about this is that there is now worldwide recognition that what Israel has been doing is illegal, unjustifiable, disproportionate and contrary to all international law. That is the consensus that has grown in sensible countries. Of course, there are countries, many of which have a very particular history with Israel, that have not yet come to accept that. In the context of the ICJ, what has been said by European Union states and even in some of the utterances from the White House and from American politicians, albeit without real concrete action, there is realisation that what is happening here is totally unacceptable and beyond what is reasonable.

I acknowledge what the Government has done. Ireland has been a thought leader on this subject in Europe particularly. It was the first government to really call out what Israel is doing and has been followed by Spain, Malta, Belgium and others. I recognise that there are other states within the EU that, for particular historical reasons, feel they cannot come to the realisation that what is happening is wrong.

Based on the reaction of Israel, we can see the desperation with which it is fighting this in the international court of opinion. The Israeli reaction is always zealous and over the top. It always seeks to play ethnicity politics in response to criticisms of it. Anybody who criticises Israel, whether it is legitimate or not, is called antisemitic. That is the standard line that comes from Tel Aviv and from the Israeli embassy here. Anybody who disagrees with Israel, criticises Israelis or calls them out for what they are doing is branded as anti-Jewish. I have always distinguished between the State of Israel and Jewish people; they are different things. We have many Jews living here in Ireland, fewer than we had in the past, who do not agree with what Israel does. The two are not the same. It is entirely legitimate to criticise Israel and also have great respect and admiration for the Jewish people because what Israel is doing is entirely at variance with what most right-thinking Jews around the world think.

I reject what Israel has done in its interactions with other states, particularly Ireland. If Israel claims to be part of the international community, Israelis should behave like that. They should behave with a little bit of reason and diplomacy rather than having its first port of call to sling mud. Rather, they should engage with the issues and accept there are issues they need to address and questions they need to answer. I agree with many of the comments that have been made in this Chamber specifically about the government of Benjamin Netanyahu. It is not a reasonable or right-thinking government. It is a government that is pursuing its own agenda.

I accept there are lots of reasons from the Palestinian side. Hamas has behaved appallingly. It has sacrificed its own people, including women and children, on the altar of its political ambition. It has created a situation now whether directly or indirectly where tens of thousands of perfectly innocent children, women and families in Gaza and elsewhere in the occupied territories are suffering for its misstep, its misjudgment, its abuse and its terrorist activities. Let us be absolutely clear about that. Neither side is right here, but we can all recognise that the individual innocent civilians in Gaza, who are now being beaten down upon by a massive military aggression, are not at fault; they have done nothing wrong. It is really important that as a member of the international community we speak the truth about what is happening and do not shy away.

I recognise that there are wider political implications; I see that absolutely. I also recognise that a quarter of trade that came out of Israel last year went into the European Union. Maybe now is the time for us to think at EU level that we can do something to leverage that significant portion of Israeli trade to force them to behave in a reasonable and lawful way. Israel claims to be part of the international community and to be a proper, real, democratic state, although often when the word "democratic" is in the name of a state it means it is anything but. Israel claims to be part of the international community and functional in that regard when, in fact, its attitudes and actions completely belie that.

While what has been happening since 7 October is appalling, it is not new. Israel has been breaking international law for decades and for generations. The settlements in the West Bank and the occupied territories are totally illegal and recognised as such. Israel has continued to walk in there with impunity and breach international law. The reality comes down to the issue of appeasement. If they are not stopped, they keep doing it and keep taking more and more. The question is when we will lay down a line to say this far and no further.