Pauline Tully (Sinn Fein)

Like other Senators, I wish to raise Israel's barbaric actions in Gaza. We have seen war crimes being committed daily for the past 19 months, with men, women and children being killed or horrifically injured. Hospitals are being bombed, medical personnel are being targeted and journalists are being killed. Tom Fletcher of the UN has said that 14,000 babies could die in the next 48 hours if vital aid supplies are not let into Gaza. There has been an 11-week blockade by Israel of essential supplies of food and medicine. This must be called out and stopped. I welcome the fact that the UK, France and Canada called it out today, but where have they and other countries been for the past 19 months in not calling it out and not imposing sanctions on Israel? Some of those same countries are complicit in the genocide because they are supplying weapons to Israel on an ongoing basis and they are just ignoring the consequences of what is happening. Our Government is saying the right things, but it needs to be more forceful and must put pressure on other countries to call this out as well. We must enact the occupied territories Bill without delay. We must also stop the sale of war bonds in this country through the Central Bank.

It has often been said that had the Holocaust that occurred in Germany in the 1930s and 1940s been known about, it would never have happened and people in other countries would have called it out. I am not so sure, because we see what is happening in Gaza on our screens and on our phones every day, yet there is almost silence from many of the main countries across the world. In fact, Netanyahu has been emboldened in his actions by Trump. He has been encouraged by him and by other leaders. I do not know what his mindset is; it is hard to fathom. What is happening needs to stop. We must put all our voices together and call out this behaviour. We must impose sanctions and do what we can to stop this madness and get the help the people in Gaza need. Senator Stephenson has given me a list of the people killed. I have 30 children's names in front of me, none of whom reached their first birthday.