Mark Daly (Fianna Fail)
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We are delighted to be joined by the Minister of State at the Department of Foreign Affairs with responsibility for international development and the Irish diaspora, Deputy Fleming. He is most welcome to the House. I welcome also our visitors in the Gallery from the New York University Gallatin School. They are here with us for three weeks but they are not actually going to be in the Seanad for the three weeks. Lucky them. I hope they get something out of this debate. You are most welcome to the Irish Senate and thank you for coming.

Seán Fleming (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Leas-Chathaoirleach. I join him in welcoming our visitors from New York. I hope they enjoy their three weeks in Ireland and find their visit to Dáil Éireann and Seanad Éireann informative.

I am in the House to address the current situation in Israel and the occupied Palestinian territory and especially actions by the Israeli Defence Forces, IDF, last week in Jenin in the West Bank as well as the rising level of violence in Israel and the occupied Palestinian territory. I begin by expressing my great concern and sadness at the events of recent weeks. The operation resulted in further loss of life, namely, those of 12 Palestinians and one Israeli. Among those who lost their lives most, if not all, were aged between 16 and 23 years. More than 100 people were injured, some 20 seriously and many of those were reported to be innocent bystanders. The Government of Israel has explained the actions of the Israeli military in Jenin in the occupied West Bank as being necessary to defend its security. This does not negate Israel’s obligations under international humanitarian law, including the duty to protect civilians.

I am also deeply troubled by recent attacks on Israelis, including a stabbing attack in Tel Aviv on 4 July, that left several people wounded. Furthermore, the rocket fire we saw from the Gaza strip into Israel is an unacceptable escalation of an already dangerous situation. Previous violence tells us the people to suffer most from a further escalation of violence would be the Palestinians. The Government urges the parties to ensure no further violent actions are taken. The level of violence we have seen so far in 2023 has been significant. According to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, so far this year 147 Palestinians have been killed in the conflict, which is significantly higher than at this point in 2022. It is clear the situation on the ground is worsening and the risk of a greater escalation that results in many more fatalities and injuries is high. The toll of these events is not only measured in the numbers of casualties and the destruction of infrastructure and livelihoods as the traumatic toll on a youthful population will have an effect for years and decades to come.

The overall picture of the current situation for Palestinian people is very worrying. We have seen increasing illegal settlement activity, violence against Palestinians by settlers in the occupied West Bank and disturbing statements by members of the Israeli Government. On 1 July the Tánaiste made a statement that condemned the decision by the Israeli Administration to advance plans for more than 5,500 further housing units in illegal settlements in the West Bank and urged the authorities to reverse the decision. Settlements are illegal under international law and their expansion must be halted. Ireland urges Israel to abide by relevant international law, including UN Security Council Resolution 2334. The Tánaiste also commented on recent settlement violence, which has become a regular feature in the West Bank and which Israel has a responsibility to prevent. The recent scenes of extreme settler violence in the West Bank villages of Turmus Ayya and Urif were shocking. Israel must ensure accountability for crimes committed by settlers against the Palestinian population. I condemn the attack last week against Israelis in Tel Aviv, which left several people wounded, and wish the victims a speedy and full recovery.On 21 June, the Tánaiste made a statement regarding the murder of four Israelis in the West Bank. Terrorist attacks against Israelis must stop as they only contribute to the escalation of violence.

Ireland’s position in respect of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is grounded in international law. Israel is the occupying power and international law is clear that there is an obligation on the occupying power to protect civilians in occupied territory. Ireland again urges Israel to comply with its obligations under international law; international humanitarian law, which sets out Israel’s obligations under the fourth Geneva Convention; and on the relevant resolutions of the UN Security Council. Ireland is proactive in raising concerns regarding the situation in multilateral fora. Ireland raises our concerns consistently within the EU. We also have a strong record of engagement in the UN, including at the Human Rights Council and during our recent term on the UN Security Council. We are a consistent voice in the European Union on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Ireland works to ensure that our issues of concern are raised and that we utilise our influence wherever possible. Ireland used the opportunity afforded by the EU-Israel association council last October to underline that Israel must comply with its obligations under international law and called on Israel to halt settlement expansion. As part of Ireland’s term on the UN Security Council in 2021 and 2022, we spoke consistently about the serious effects of the actions of Israeli authorities on the Palestinian people. Ireland stressed the effects of settlement expansion, evictions and demolitions, and highlighted the importance of protection of journalists in the wake of the killing of Shireen Abu Akleh.

As Minister responsible for Irish Aid, I am acutely aware that while Ireland continues to prioritise a two-state solution, we must also work to improve conditions for Palestinians now. That is why Ireland’s support for the Palestinian people is also reflected in our development assistance programme. Ireland’s total package of support for Palestinian people in 2023 will be in the order of €16 million, including €14 million from the Palestine programme and €2 million provided to non-governmental organisations with which we work closely. The Palestine programme’s stated aim is to contribute to preserving the space for a two-state solution and as such includes support for Palestinian institution-building and human rights along with much-needed humanitarian assistance.

Ireland has contributed €8 million to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency in 2023. The United Nations Relief and Works Agency provides critical services to Palestinian refugees, including education and healthcare. Ireland is a long-standing supporter of the critical work undertaken by United Nations Relief and Works Agency on behalf of Palestinian refugees. I will again emphasise that we utilise these funds as much as possible for education and healthcare purposes. The Palestine programme has a strong focus on education. In 2023, Ireland will provide €3 million to the Palestinian Authority Ministry of Education. We will also bring 25 Palestinian postgraduate students to Ireland as part of the Ireland Fellows programme. That is a programme operated in the Department of Foreign Affairs whereby we bring graduates from around the world to Ireland each year. They have university degrees in their own country and they come to do a one-year postgraduate programme in our third-level institutions. We bring anywhere between 150 and 200 students to Ireland each year, fully paid for by the kind generosity of the Irish taxpayer. When they go back to their own country they have a greater level of education and understanding of ways of doing activities outside their own country. Many of them go back into their own government departments, civil society, non-governmental organisations and the private sector. I was privileged last week to meet with the group who have been here for the past year and who are all heading home. They were from a variety of countries around the world. It is good for Ireland to have this link. Those people who have spent a year in Ireland will, we hope, be in significant influential positions in their home countries in the years to come and will be great contacts for us to have with those countries. It is a very worthwhile programme. The students benefit a lot from it but there is a mutual benefit for Ireland in the long run. Come September we will have another large group coming to Ireland again, studying at about 17 different third-level institutions. They are not all Dublin-based but are everywhere around the country. They pick the subject they want to do for their postgraduate degree. Our Department, with an agency here in town, works out which of the third-level institutions runs the course best suited to them. They self-select where they want to go themselves. It is a very important programme, the Irish Fellows Programme, of which members of the public may not be fully aware. I am pleased to expand on it here because it is very relevant to today's statements.

Ireland also supports Palestinian non-governmental organisations working on human rights, accountability and democratisation. In the Gaza strip, Ireland and France are developing a solar energy plant to power water treatment, which will allow treated water to be used for irrigation. This innovative project underlines our willingness to find new ways to support the people in Palestine. It is important to acknowledge that improving conditions for people on the ground is also necessary for any future political process. Ireland will continue to provide assistance to the Palestinian people which improves their daily lives in tandem with our support for a political horizon leading to a two-state solution.

The situation in the occupied Palestinian territory today is very concerning. The recent actions of the Israeli Government including demolitions, settlement expansion, and the killing of Palestinian civilians, not only have the potential to further inflame tensions but undermine the prospects for a lasting peace. I call again on the Israeli Government to halt all actions in violation of international law and to work towards a just and lasting peace. Ireland will continue to work with our international partners, particularly at European Union level, as well as with both the Israeli Government and the Palestinian Authority to encourage steps to restore a political horizon for the future.

Aidan Davitt (Fianna Fail)
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We are delighted to see the Minister of State here today. He is one of the hardest-working Ministers we have and he is no stranger to this House. As he outlined, no one can condone the incursions that have happened recently in the Palestinian area. From our experience here in Ireland over our 30-odd years of conflict in the North - or longer as some people could tell us - I think we have been quite successful and we do not praise ourselves enough for how far we have come in 25 years since the Good Friday Agreement. Anybody who looks to the stability we have in the North now would have to say it is a success. Okay, there are parts that are not functioning. The all-Ireland processes could be utilised a lot more and would be certainly a help to more peace on this island and a way forward for our Unionist brethren in a more inclusive Ireland. I have a feeling that Israel and Palestine are at that crossroads. We know from our own past that violence breeds more violence on both sides. No side can wash its hands in this respect or say it is without blame. There have been 29 people killed in Israel including an unfortunate Palestinian working in Israel who was hit by a Hezbollah rocket. As I mentioned earlier in respect of damning incursions, there is fault on both sides. I would stress the need to work with the Israeli Government and to try to get the Palestinian representatives also, get them around the table. It has been tried. The Minister of State alluded to the two-state solution. That certainly needs to be fleshed out further and worked on harder. I fully concur with what our Minister of State was saying here. I would like to think Ireland, as a neutral country, could be to the fore in trying to show a path forward in the context of what has been the case here and in the North, could give hope to people who do not have it at present, and could prove and facilitate a peace that hopefully would be long-lasting.

Mark Daly (Fianna Fail)
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Before I call on Senator Joe O'Reilly, I welcome to the Gallery his son Daire and friends, Matt Dempsey from Massachusetts and Liam from Dublin.They are most welcome to Seanad Éireann to see Senator Joe O'Reilly address the House.

Joe O'Reilly (Fine Gael)
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I thank the Leas-Chathaoirleach for welcoming those visitors. At the outset, I welcome the Minister of State, Deputy Fleming, to the House. I acknowledge that he is bringing the same energy and competencies to this Ministry that he did to the area of finance. Before I get into the issue, I fully endorse the latter part of the Minister of State's presentation, which stated that it is his responsibility to increase the aid and keep the aid going. As he said, that postgraduate programme is very important. I salute all of that, which is important in the context of dealing with the situation. We are grateful to the Minister of State for that as a starting point.

The opening months of 2023 have seen a deterioration in human rights and overall well-being in the occupied territories of the West Bank, including in East Jerusalem and Gaza. Recent incursions into Ramallah on 8 June and Jenin on 18 June have led, in the case of Jenin, to 13 civilian casualties. Increased settler violence, as the Minister of State alluded to, is a feature alongside that. There have been arbitrary arrests, a huge number of injuries, demolition of properties etc. It has been a catastrophic incursion. It is illegal and it is wrong. It is a totally disproportionate response to any particular threat to Israel. It is completely disproportionate and is illegal in international law.

The number of Palestinian fatalities in the first quarter of 2023 is approximately three times higher than in the same period in 2022. The number of injuries is six times higher. In May, the death of Khader Adnan in Israeli detention, following 86 days on hunger strike, prompted an escalation in violence. Part of that, as has been alluded to by my good friend, Senator Davitt, involves Hamas violence. Of course, we condemn any acts of violence on Israel. That is not what we are about but that does not for a moment justify the incursions or the repressive approach. To be truthful, the approach taken by Israel to the occupied territories is one of a nervous country. Because of the whole illegality of the settlements and the daft set-up there, they are afraid, for the moment, to allow normal, civilised living there. My colleague, Deputy Colm Burke from Cork, made a very good video on this when he was a Member of the European Parliament. It is worth watching.

The Israeli Government has expedited the construction of illegal settlements. On Sunday, 18 June, it announced a further 4,560 housing units in the West Bank. The strategic fragmenting of the occupied territory is putting at risk any chance of a two-state solution. There is the curtailing of freedom of movement, there are road blocks, diversions and identity cards. Forty UN security resolutions on Jerusalem have been passed to no avail. Between 1993 and 1995, the Oslo Accords involved establishing areas A, B and C. However, recently in Jenin, there were arbitrary mass arrests. It all began in 1948 with the Nakba, the catastrophe, when 750,000 Palestinians had to flee. The recent Amnesty International report referred to Israel's behaviour as "apartheid". A recent UN report by the special rapporteur Francesca Albanese again condemned the human rights situation and the colonisation etc. whereby three generations of Palestinian people are in occupied territories.

In the short time available to me, I note that from an Irish perspective, the ideal has been the two-state solution. That seems to have been made particularly more difficult now by the fragmentation and the nature of the settlements. It remains the Irish policy but another option is to create a proper unitary state based on democratic principles, mutual respect and proper rights for each people. These do not exist for all the Palestinian people who are still living in Israel. A proper state, however, that involves a mutuality of respect, rights and construction is another option. Ireland is vigilant on this matter. The Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs is being so, just as the former Minister for Foreign Affairs, Deputy Coveney, had done and the Minister of State, Deputy Fleming, is now. However, we now need to heat that up. Tragically, it is getting worse, so we need to keep up the pressure in Europe and internationally to get a solution. Unfortunately, we cannot go further with it now but we will on future occasions.

Mark Daly (Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Senator and I call Senator Warfield.

Fintan Warfield (Sinn Fein)
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I welcome the Minister of State to the House. The Israeli Government's military bombardment of the Jenin refugee camp caused the deaths of 12 Palestinians, five of whom were children. Thousands of people were forced to leave their homes. It destroyed roads, electricity and water services. The Israeli Government outrageously managed to make refugees out of refugees. The views of the United Nations are that the military force used by the Israelis was a gross violation of international law and the standard of the force that was employed could well amount to a war crime.

The actions in Jenin and the Israeli Government's apartheid policies of immiseration of the Palestinian people in the West Bank and Gaza are undermining efforts to secure a sustainable and peaceful two-nation state. The international community must urgently respond to this aggression and occupation by the Israelis. The response of the European Union has fallen well short of what is needed to force the Israeli Government to abandon its scorched Palestinian earth policy. The onus is also on the Government to effectively respond to this latest and endless aggression towards the Palestinians. Peace and a two-nation solution to a Palestinian-Israeli conflict need a government to champion it. The Irish Government is well placed in the EU and the rest of the world to be such an ambassador. We can set the momentum and other governments in the EU will follow. There is already cross-party support in the Oireachtas, demanding an end to Israeli occupation and annexation of Palestinian land. There are measures that can be taken immediately. This Government should recognise the state of Palestine. The Oireachtas has already voted to recognise the state of Palestine. Let this Government act on that mandate from the Oireachtas, a mandate that represents the moral desire of the Irish people and the majority of people in our country. Let this Government's response to Jenin be the recognition of the state of Palestine. The Government should also take the lead in withdrawing its investment in companies that operate in the occupied territories. On the foot of that decision, it should lobby with credibility to the EU to follow suit and withdraw any investments it has in the occupied territories. An international campaign of sustained pressure on the Israeli Government is urgently needed to stop the Israeli Government's military policy of humiliation of the Palestinian people. This Government should lead that international crusade for peace and a two-nation-state solution in Palestine and Israel.

Paul Gavan (Sinn Fein)
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Well said.

Mark Daly (Fianna Fail)
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Before I call on the next speaker, I welcome the guests of the Minister, Deputy Darragh O'Brien, and the Minister, Deputy Humphreys to the Gallery. They are most welcome. Importantly, I also welcome the cousins of the Minister of State, Deputy Fleming, who I believe are also here with us. I thank them for coming and I hope they enjoy their time in Leinster House. I know the Minister of State will meet them afterwards. They can be sure he is doing a good job in his portfolio, as he always does. I thank them for being here.

Marie Sherlock (Labour)
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I thank the Minister of State for coming into the House. It is important to state we are having these statements today because Senator Black, colleagues in Sinn Féin and others in this House, along with us in the Labour Party, have been calling for this debate.It needs to be had, of course, because we are on the back of looking at atrocities that have taken place in Jenin over recent weeks where drones and ground troops were used to invade a refugee camp to, as Senator Warfield so eloquently put it, "make refugees out of refugees". Some 160 Palestinians have died since the start of this year. Yes, a number of Israelis are dead as well, but we have to look at the aggressor here. We are seeing an unprecedented escalation of violence such as we have not seen in many years against the Palestinian people.

The new far-right Government in Israel now poses a threat to the Palestinian people in a way that we have not seen for many years. Indeed, the statements in particular by the Minister of Finance, Bezalel Smotrich, about how there is no such thing as a Palestinian people, speaking in front of a flag showing Israel owning all of Palestine and even the country of Jordan, shows that this Government knows no bounds, has no moral responsibility and will do anything to assert the primacy of Israel and trample over all others.

We have spoken before in this House about using the word "apartheid". There is a resistance by the Government to describing what is happening as apartheid. Of course, this is not some nebulous concept. We know that international treaties prohibit and explicitly criminalise apartheid.

We know that apartheid has been described by the 2017 UN report on the practices towards the Palestinian people by Israel, and the Amnesty International report came to the same conclusions with regard to the relentless land seizures, air strikes, restrictions of movement, unlawful killing and denials of their nationality and citizenship; denials of their very identity.

The very reason we are having these statements today is a call and plea to the Government now to step up and take on that moral responsibility it needs to and show moral leadership within the European Union. We saw a video in recent weeks, unfortunately, by the head of the European Commission, Ms Ursula von der Leyen, with regard to Israel, which confused many in terms of the EU's positioning now.

Ireland, however, as a member of the EU and as a moral influence within the UN, needs to use its position to call out the apartheid that is taking place and the attempted extermination of the Palestinian people. It needs to proceed with Senator Black's Control of Economic Activity (Occupied Territories) Bill 2018 and, ultimately, recognise Palestine for the state that it is and should be.

There is a responsibility on the Irish State to act now. We have spent much time talking about what neutrality means and our role in the world over the last number of weeks. This is a very clear example of how Ireland should be using its influence and its unique place in the world, if it could be called that, to support the Palestinian people. We are not seeing any other country step up in the way it needs to at this point.

Lynn Ruane (Independent)
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I welcome the Minister of State to the Chamber. I begin by commending Senator Black for consistently shining a light on what is happening in Israel and the occupied Palestinian territories. I extend thanks on her behalf to Senator Chambers for scheduling the debate prior to the summer recess.

The recent invasion of Jenin refugee camp by the Israeli military represents a significant, but not unexpected, escalation of Israeli violence within the occupied Palestinian territories. Twelve people were killed, some of whom were children. Hundreds of people have been injured and thousands more have been made homeless. The Israeli military impeded Palestinian ambulance crews from treating the wounded. The people of Jenin refugee camp lived there because they have been displaced from their homes due to Israeli colonial expansion. What we are observing is what UN experts have referred to the "de-Palestinianisation" of the region. It is deliberate and is being facilitated by domestic law, which is discriminatory and acquisitive by design.

This latest escalation comes shortly after a huge wave of violence from illegal Israeli settlers that targeted Palestinians across the West Bank. The Israeli military, which is responsible for the protection of the occupied Palestinian population under international law, did nothing to stop it. In fact, a significant number of assailants were identified as off-duty soldiers. Violence against Palestinians is now, it seems, official policy of the state of Israel. While violent settlers once represented the fringe of Israeli politics, they are now represented in number in Israel's Cabinet.

The failure of the international community to stand up for the rights of the Palestinians has created a sense of impunity, which is fuelling racist extremism at the highest level in Israel. The stifling of the Palestinian economy means that many workers have to work for pittance under abusive conditions in Israel or in illegal Israeli settlements, which have confiscated and hoarded Palestinian land, water and natural resources. The only way Palestinians can enter the settlement are as low-paid workers. To get there, they are not allowed to use segregated Israeli-only roads. Every day, if they travel through the occupied West Bank for school or work, they are subject to Israeli military checkpoints. If a person is accused of a crime in the occupied West Bank, an Israeli defendant enjoys the due process of the Israeli court system while Palestinians, including children, are subjected to military tribunals with an estimated 95% to 99% conviction rate.

What we are observing is an institutionalised regime of oppression and domination by one racial group over another. This is apartheid, plain and simple. Israel is committing the crime of apartheid against the Palestinian people in blatant violation of international law. This has been documented by various multilateral institutions and international organisations, such as Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch, as well as prominent Israeli and Palestinian NGOs, such as B'Tselem and Al-Haq. The South African and Namibian Governments, made up of veterans of their successful struggle against apartheid, also concur. However, somehow, our own Government does not. Pithing the use of the term is unhelpful. Why do we feel we are better placed to assess whether apartheid is being committed than those with lived experience of the same oppression and domination? To me, this is not a justifiable position to take.

I acknowledge and commend the work being done by the newly formed civil society coalition, the Irish Anti-Apartheid Campaign for Palestine. The Government will issue press releases when Palestinians are murdered in the occupied territory or when an Irish Aid-funded school is destroyed. These are words crafted by committee, designed to appease certain American and European politicians and officials who, through their inaction, are complicit in this ongoing pattern of Israeli expansion and violence.

The question I wish to pose is about whether we are content that words of condemnation are the extent of our solidarity. The Government has blocked the passage of useful, practical legislation like Senator Black's occupied territories Bill. When Russia launched its illegal invasion of Ukraine, we agreed to oppose sanctions in a matter of weeks. The Palestinian people have been waiting decades. I believe the Government is out of step with the public who understand the Palestinian struggle for freedom implicitly. We need to begin listening to Palestinians, the South Africans and human rights experts and finally recognise the reality of Israeli apartheid. The Palestinian people are keenly aware of Ireland and Palestine's shared history of anti-colonial resistance. The bond of solidarity and friendship between us is powerful. They look to us for support for their struggle for freedom and self-determination and we are currently letting them down. That must change, and it requires a significant shift in Government policy and practice to do so.

Fiona O'Loughlin (Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Leas-Chathaoirleach for the opportunity to speak on this really difficult international situation. I had the opportunity many years ago to spend six months in Israel on a kibbutz. It was very close to the Gaza Strip; it was about six miles from there. I had the opportunity to see how partnership could work when people want it to.There were a number of Palestinians working on the kibbutz, whom I got to know very well. I got to visit their families in Gaza. That was an exceptional situation, whereby the particular kibbutz had a very good and respectful relationship with Palestinians, who went there and were paid to work. It genuinely was a respectful situation. Sadly, having taken the opportunity to travel around Israel and learn more about it, and having followed the situation ever since, I now know my experience was more the exception than the rule.

I read Colum McCann's book, Apeirogon, two years ago, which I recommend to everybody. It deals with the conflict from the point of view of two dads, one on either side. The daughter of one was blown up by Palestinians, while the daughter of the other was killed by the Israelis. It is a factual story about shared grief and two bereaved fathers trying to put out the message, which we have learned about from our own conflict in Northern Ireland, about people coming together and trying to ensure there are no more killings. Sadly, we talk and talk about this issue but the violence and the taking of life continue. The escalation that has happened, even this year alone, including the incursions by the Israeli security forces into Jenin last week, is deeply regrettable. We must be hugely concerned about the level of violence there. Operations such as happened in Jenin are increasingly involving live fire and resulting in significant civilian casualties, including children. This can never be acceptable and we must shout loudly about it. Protection of civilians is of paramount importance and it is the responsibility of Israel as the occupying power.

I commend the fact Ireland stands ready to support all efforts to achieve a just and lasting two-state solution based on international law and internationally agreed parameters. That represents the only sustainable prospect of enabling Palestinians and Israelis to live in peace. The Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs continues to discuss this situation on a regular basis with international counterparts. It was Fianna Fáil in government, with Brian Lenihan Sr. as Minister for Foreign Affairs, that led Ireland in 1980 to become the first EU member state to declare that a solution to the conflict in the Middle East had to be based on a fully sovereign state of Palestine, independent of and co-existing with Israel. That was 43 years ago and here we are, still having more or less the same debates. The escalation over the past two years, which has led to a dramatic increase in the loss of life, is absolutely shocking. Israel has a legal as well as moral responsibility to protect all civilians in the occupied Palestinian territory.

Ireland is known within the EU and the UN as one of the strongest countries in consistently raising the violation of international law and the UN charter on Palestine. It is hugely important that while there are other like-minded countries with strong views, we work to persuade more within the EU towards the need for justice and to create a credible pathway to a two-state solution. We need a stronger collective voice within Europe, involving a number of significant EU member states and others. If we were to join forces and recognise collectively the state of Palestine, it would be far more impactful than one country going it alone. That is the strong and important message we can give to the Minister of State from this Chamber. We must ensure all negotiations and conversations with all other EU countries and all countries outside the EU lead to a united voice seeking to bring peace and to support the Palestinian people.

Paul Gavan (Sinn Fein)
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I welcome the Minister of State. I listened carefully to his statement and I do not disagree, as such, with anything he said. However, the key message I would like to get across to him today is that, right now and for some time since, words are not and have not been enough, not when we see the horrors being inflicted on the Palestinian people. Patricia McKeown of the Irish Congress of Trade Unions, ICTU, made a powerful speech at the union's conference last week. Speaking about what happened in Jenin, she said: "This was not an operation, it was not an incursion, it was not a raid; it was an invasion." That is exactly what it was.

I cannot help but contrast the Government's stance on different invasions happening in the world at the moment. It has taken a strong stance against Putin's illegal invasion of Ukraine and is strongly supportive of sanctions on Russia. That is in contrast to its stance on the 75-year occupation of Palestine, with a constant refusal by the Government to endorse sanctions for actions, including some of those mentioned here today. There is Senator Black's excellent Control of Economic Activity (Occupied Territories) Bill 2018. The Illegal Israeli Settlements Divestment Bill 2023 was put forward in the Dáil a couple of months ago by my colleague, Deputy Brady. If passed, it would compel the Ireland Strategic Investment Fund, ISIF, to divest shareholdings in companies listed on a UN database of businesses operating within illegal Israeli settlements. That would be incredibly meaningful and would show leadership to the world.

We have an obligation to show leadership. Regretfully, I am not seeing that leadership to date. Words are simply not enough at this point. I do not have the fully up-to-date figures on how many Palestinians have died in the year to date. I understand the number was 160, including 26 children, as of mid-June. As the Minister of State knows, we have received postcards with pictures of those children, some of whom were riding their bicycles when they were gunned down by the occupying Israeli forces. The idea that just speaking strongly about the situation is somehow enough is entirely unacceptable at this point.

Language is important. The Minister of State's refusal to use the word "apartheid" is entirely unacceptable. He must be truthful about what the situation is in occupied Palestine. Amnesty International Ireland has stated:

Israeli authorities enact multiple measures to deliberately deny Palestinians their basis rights and freedoms, including draconian movement restrictions in the OPT [occupied Palestinian territories], chronic discriminatory underinvestment in Palestinian communities in Israel, and the denial of refugees' right to return.

It also documents forcible transfer, administrative detention, torture and unlawful killings in both Israel and the occupied Palestinian territories. This situation is not just being highlighted by Amnesty International. It has also been detailed by Human Rights Watch and the UN special rapporteur. A total of 450 civil society groups across the world, including heroic Jewish civil society groups like B'Tselem, have called out that Israel is an apartheid state. When I hear the Tánaiste say that word is not helpful, I must ask to whom it is not helpful. Surely our first obligation is to tell the truth. The truth is that Israel is an apartheid state. Unfortunately, I am old enough to remember when Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil had to be dragged, kicking and screaming, to implement sanctions against apartheid South Africa in the late 1980s. Eventually, the European Union made them do it. Are we back in that situation again?

We need leadership. We have been hearing a lot about Ireland's positive neutrality and how we are not neutral when it comes to invasions. Will the Minister of State show the leadership we need? Will the Government recognise the state of Palestine? That would send a signal to the Palestinian people and the world. We cannot keep waiting for somebody else to do it. We must show leadership. Right now, we are on the wrong side of history. While we have correctly taken action against Russia, we have not taken meaningful action against Israel. That is entirely unacceptable. The Government can and must do better. The Palestinian people deserve that at the very least.

Words do not cut it any more. The Government has an opportunity to do better. Will the Minister of State specifically address the issue of the use of the word "apartheid", which the whole of the rest of the world recognises is the case? As I said, more than 450 civil society bodies, including all the ones we respect, recognise and have detailed why Israel is an apartheid state.The fact that the Government refuses to use that term is cowardice, frankly. We need to speak up. It is difficult when some of the allies of Israel are friends of ours. However, I believe you have to be more honest to your friends about issues such as this. The Minister of State should call it out. He should call out Israel for the apartheid state that it is and finally take meaningful action in terms of boycott, divestment and sanctions against the apartheid Israel regime.

Fintan Warfield (Sinn Fein)
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Hear, hear.

Sharon Keogan (Independent)
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Well done.

Mark Daly (Fianna Fail)
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There are two Senators offering and I must bring the Minister of State back in, by order of the House, at 5.31 p.m. I suggest the Senators share time - three minutes and two minutes, respectively. Is that agreed? Agreed.

Sharon Keogan (Independent)
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Israel enforces a system of oppression and domination against the Palestinian people wherever it has control over their rights. This includes Palestinians living in Israel and the occupied Palestinian territories as well as displaced refugees in other countries. Massive seizures of Palestinian land and property, unlawful killings, forcible transfers, drastic movement restrictions and the denial of nationality and citizenship to Palestinians are all components of a system that amounts to apartheid under international law.

Last year, Amnesty International called on the UN to impose targeted sanctions against Israel after joining other human rights groups in accusing it of breaching international law. While pressing for action against Russia, however, the US and other governments have resisted similar measures against Israel. For some reason, Israel seems to be untouchable when it comes to international sanctions for crimes that are treated very harshly when another country commits them.

The US is not alone in facing accusations of hypocrisy. The UK and Canada led calls for the International Criminal Court, ICC, to investigate Russian war crimes in Ukraine. Two years ago, the two countries said the ICC should drop an investigation of Israel in part on the grounds that Palestine is not a sovereign country, although it is recognised as a state by the UN.

This hypocrisy must stop. This special treatment of the state of Israel has worn very thin indeed. It now must begin to comply with international law or face action. I look forward to further action being taken by this Government as Ireland seeks to use her voice on the international stage to sue for greater equality and justice in the Middle East.

Annie Hoey (Labour)
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I thank the Leas-Chathaoirleach for allowing me to share time. I was reading up on some of the latest developments and some quotes from some of the news articles about Israel struck me. The Israel Defense Forces, IDF, regarding a recent bombing that ended up killing civilians, stated:

[They] made numerous efforts to minimise harm to the civilian population in the Gaza Strip, including by delaying and even cancelling planned attacks when unexpected presence of civilians was identified ... The IDF carried out attacks only after a real-time assessment before the attack that the expected collateral damage to civilians and civilian property will not be excessive in relation to the military advantage anticipated ... Several hours prior to strikes, the IDF ensured that the buildings were evacuated from civilians by various means, such as telephone calls and ... “roof-knocking” ... These buildings were not attacked until they were fully evacuated of civilian population.

Is that not a ghastly sentence to read out? It knew that there were a number of civilians. There was one family of 42, I think, who were killed in that attack. A Middle East correspondent, in respect of their investigation of this particular attack, stated:

... we heard vivid accounts of bombs obliterating homes, of fathers digging their little girls out from under rubble, of a teenager fatally injured as she lay in bed holding a teddy bear...

I just do not see how those two accounts can tally up. First, I cannot even contemplate clearing a space so you can blow it up. Second, there were children killed in that particular attack, and that is only one example of the numerous attacks that the IDF and others have laid out on the Palestinian people.

We cannot stand by. Ireland, passively, let this happen. We pride ourselves as being a country that holds up human rights both here and aboard. We also have an international reputation as purveyors of peace across the world, so it is beyond me why we are not participating in the global call for stronger sanctions against Israel to end some of these truly barbaric attacks on the Palestinian people.

Seán Fleming (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Senators for their contributions to the debate. In the short period available to us at least ten Senators spoke, which demonstrates the interest there is in this matter. I myself will deal with a few of the remarks here now but there will be a debate in the Dáil tomorrow for about three hours on this same issue. The Tánaiste will be present at that debate, so we will ensure that the record of what the various Senators have said will be brought to his attention overnight and those issues can be covered in tomorrow's statements in the Dáil as well. The Tánaiste is not here personally but he will deal with this issue tomorrow here in the Houses of the Oireachtas. There is a second opportunity for a response to some of the issues that have been mentioned.

I acknowledge people will say we are not strong enough but we have been very forthright in urging Israel to comply with its obligations under international law. That is it in a nutshell. We ask people to obey the law. We are not the policemen who go out and enforce the law. What can a democratic state do, only insist that international laws that are passed and agreed are fully respected, even though we are not the implementers personally?

Some people said that this is not about words but about actions. Then the Government was pilloried for not using a particular word, namely, "apartheid" that somebody felt we should use when we speak about these issues. On the one hand, Members say it is not about words but about action but, on the other, it is all about the use of a particular word. I found that a little confusing, in that people were concentrating on kind of contradictory points. The basic point Members are making, however, is that they are looking for a stronger voice and stronger action from Ireland on these issues, and I accept the bona fides of everything that has been said.

The debate here has been unusual in that we are all effectively on the one side, only it is a question of how strong the action a particular government can take. There was no fundamental disagreement among any of the contributors as regards our views on this area. It is good that we have a clear view on this right across Seanad Éireann, as expressed in the debate today. Everybody was clear about the incursions by the Israel Defense Forces in Jenin, which had a serious impact. I was very clear and critical in my opening statement in condemning attacks in the other direction which impacted Israeli citizens. All violence is wrong, so we cannot be selective. I think that if people were to listen to what I said in my opening remarks, they would say there was an equal amount of criticism. While you might be more supportive of one point of view, you cannot support illegal actions and violence by those people, even though you might support their general position. We do not support their level of violence.

The Israeli-Palestinian conflict is a priority foreign policy for Ireland, including within the European Union. I met in April of this year the Palestinian deputy foreign minister, Amal Jadou, during her visit to Dublin and to Dáil Éireann. She is a very effective person. By the way - and I do not want anyone to draw a particular significance to this - I have met umpteen delegations from foreign countries, NGOs and so on since I came into my role at the beginning of the year. That was the first delegation where I was sitting on one side and there were about six women across from me. Every member of the delegation was female. They were very educated, very clear on what they wanted and very forthright in what they were saying. I almost felt I was the person in the minority, which was no harm for once because it is regularly the opposite case. In Palestine the level of education people have in some of their universities is exceptionally high, and the case they can make stands up anywhere when they get the opportunity to make it.

The Tánaiste has engaged on this issue at the EU Foreign Affairs Council and it is a regular subject when he engages with his EU counterparts. The EU foreign ministers held informal discussions with Prime Minister Shtayyeh and Foreign Minister al-Maliki in January. The EU is committed to enhancing its engagement with the Palestinian Authority through high-level political dialogue. That will happen during the course of this year.

Last week, the EU special representative for the Middle East peace process was here in Dublin and held meetings with the Tánaiste, as well as with members of the Joint Committee on Foreign Affairs and Defence. It is important that such delegations meet the cross-party committees and not only the Government, and that engagement was very important as well. During our tenure on the UN Security Council, we were very outspoken about the negative trajectory on the ground and we used the platform for a call to adherence to international law. That is essentially it. There is international law to which we all sign up. We ask people to abide by it.

Everything that has been said here will be brought to the Tánaiste's attention overnight because there will be another debate in the Houses of the Oireachtas on this topic tomorrow and he will be able to take up the points that have been raised.

Mark Daly (Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Minister of State for coming to Seanad Éireann today for this important debate.

When is it proposed to sit again?

Joe O'Reilly (Fine Gael)
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Tomorrow, at 9.30 a.m.

Mark Daly (Fianna Fail)
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Is that agreed? Agreed.