Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance)
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Question 20: To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade his views on the Freedom Waves initiative and the efforts of the Irish ship [i]MV Saoirse[/i] to bring aid and solidarity to the besieged persons of Gaza; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [33710/11]

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn (Donegal North East, Sinn Fein)
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Question 23: To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade the communications he has made with the Israeli authorities to protect the safety of Irish citizens and human rights activists aboard the [i]MV Saoirse[/i]; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [33723/11]

Joan Collins (Dublin South Central, People Before Profit Alliance)
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Question 25: To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade his views on the Freedom Waves initiative and the participation of the Irish ship [i]MV Saoirse[/i]; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [33709/11]

Eamon Gilmore (Dún Laoghaire, Labour)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 20, 23 and 25 together.

I fully respect the motives, intentions and objectives of those seeking to campaign against the Israeli blockade of Gaza, both through engaging in peaceful protest and through seeking to send humanitarian aid there. However, as I have stated in the House previously, I could not support a venture whereby citizens intended to place themselves at risk by attempting to break an armed naval blockade. This view has increasingly been taken also by the Governments in the region from which the ships were sailing, and by the UN Secretary General.

The primary objective of the voyage of the MV Saoirse and the Canadian ship the Tahrir was to draw political attention to the blockade itself, but I believe that a small consignment of medical supplies for Gaza may also have been carried.

On this occasion and prior to the original intended sailing in July, I have been in constant contact with the Israeli authorities, both personally and through my Department's officials, to reiterate my insistence that any military interception which Israel chose to conduct must ensure the safety of Irish citizens on board.

My primary reaction to the reports of the interception on Friday was therefore that I was relieved that nobody on board was injured, bearing in mind of course the dreadful events of last year. Fourteen Irish citizens in total were detained on the Saoirse, and brought to the Israeli port of Ashdod. Officials from the Irish Embassy have visited them on a daily basis, and have been engaged with the Israeli authorities to ensure their prompt repatriation. They have reported no injuries or physical harm, although it appears there was damage to the boat during the interception.

I and my Department have been consistently pressing the Israeli authorities for the earliest possible release of our citizens, following the interception of the MV Saoirse. While the Israeli authorities were willing to deport them immediately, the persons themselves chose not to waive their right to appeal deportation. I respect this decision as they clearly did not wish to give credence to the assertion that they had entered Israel illegally. I myself met with the Israeli Ambassador last evening to impress upon him the importance which I attach to the earliest possible release of the detainees. Arrangements are now being made for seven of those detained to fly home later today while the remaining seven detainees are due to fly home tomorrow morning.

On the broader issue, while I would once again condemn the ongoing rocket attacks from Gaza into Israel, I have made clear many times my insistence that the overall blockade of Gaza, as it is practiced, is illegal and counterproductive, and must be ended. While Israel has a right to prevent smuggling of weapons to Gaza, and therefore to search cargoes, it has no general right to prevent other materials or persons entering or leaving. Boats sailing to Gaza can never carry more than a symbolic fraction of the needs of the territory, and so the only real answer is the full opening to normal business of the land crossing points from Israel. This is the key issue on which I will continue to focus, at EU level and internationally.

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn (Donegal North East, Sinn Fein)
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Question 21: To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade his views on the legitimate concerns for the safety of Mr. René Ganzález Sehwerert's who is on probation for three years in the United States after finishing a brutal 13 year sentence, and is resident in an area which he has been forbidden to frequent under the terms of his release, rather than be allowed to return to his homeland of Cuba. [33722/11]

Eamon Gilmore (Dún Laoghaire, Labour)
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I am aware of the case of Mr. René Ganzález Sehwerert, who was one of five Cuban nationals known as the "Miami five", who were convicted on charges ranging from espionage to first degree murder in 2001 in the United States. I am also aware that Mr Ganzález, who was accused of conspiracy to commit espionage, was released on probation on 7 October. The Irish Government has no standing in this matter. This is a bilateral consular question between the United States and the Cuban authorities.