John Paul Phelan (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fine Gael)
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104. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade the reason he made no public statement in relation to Hezbollah attacks on northern Israel, which have been ongoing since October 2023, but commented immediately on the apparent Israeli retaliation against those attacks on 18 September last. [38385/24]

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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While attention has been focused on the catastrophic humanitarian situation in Gaza, it is important also to stress that there have been ongoing attacks across the Israel-Lebanon border since October 2023, and that approximately 100,000 people in northern Israel and in southern Lebanon have been evacuated from their homes since then.

I have repeatedly drawn attention to this unacceptable situation, including in discussions at EU level and elsewhere. I have been clear that firing is going on in both directions, that populations on both sides of the border are suffering as a result, and called on both sides to halt these actions.

It is clear that Hezbollah has long been a malign actor, in Lebanon and in the region. I am also deeply concerned about the ongoing escalation in Israel's response, about its scale and intensity, and the rising number of casualties as a result of Israel's aerial bombardment. There is a risk of wider conflict, which would be disastrous for all the peoples of the region.

I have called for calm, restraint and de-escalation on all sides, and for all to use their influence to this end. It is past time for the violence to stop.