Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 10 October 2023
11. Deputy Matt Carthy asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs if he had requested to visit any part of Palestine or Israel during his recent visit to the Middle East for which permission was not granted; if so, the authority that refused the request; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [43803/23]
View answer12. Deputy Matt Carthy asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs his views on a report in the media (details supplied) that he had requested to visit Palestinian towns in Area C of the West Bank and that he was denied access. [43804/23]
View answer14. Deputy Catherine Connolly asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs further to his recent visit to Israel/Palestine, if he can confirm several reports that the Israeli Government refused his request to visit Palestinian towns in Area C of the West Bank; if he was given a reason for this refusal, and if he accepts the explanation given; if he agrees that the areas in question are not part of Israel but illegally occupied; if this rejection by Israel significantly reduced his capacity to see and experience the effects of the illegal occupation in areas where schools have recently been destroyed and residents have been forced to flee because of settler attacks; if he regards this denial of access as a further rebuff to the international community by Israel; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [44083/23]
View answer15. Deputy Catherine Connolly asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs further to his recent visit to Israel/Palestine, if he planned or attempted to visit Ein Samiya in Area C of the West Bank, where, according to reports from the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, schools were destroyed in August and Palestinian residents were forced to flee following attacks from illegal settlers; if he had any engagement with Israeli authorities with regard to a visit to this area, and what the result of these discussions was; if he feels that the policy of the Israeli authorities with regard to the role of the international community has changed since the new Israeli Government was formed; what his plans are now to address the deteriorating situation in the occupied Palestinian territory; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [44084/23]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 11, 12, 14 and 15 together.
I am horrified by the scenes that we have witnessed in Israel and Gaza over the past few days. I have unreservedly condemned the attack by Hamas on Israel. The deliberate and systematic targeting of civilians can never be justified. The taking of hostages, including young children and the elderly is unconscionable. They must be released immediately.
I have written to Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen to express our deep condolences. I visited Israel, the occupied Palestinian territory and Jordan just one month ago. It is scarcely imaginable how the lives of so many people that I met during that visit will be irrevocably scarred by this violence.
During my recent visit to Israel, I clearly underlined, during my engagements with my counterparts, my concern at the accelerating rate of settler violence in the occupied Palestinian territory, which, alongside demolitions, is leading to the displacement of Palestinian communities from their homes. In view of the priority afforded by Ireland to this issue, the proposed programme for my visit included a visit to Ein Samiya, the site of a recent school demolition in Area C of the occupied Palestinian territory.
Israel has full civil and security control in Area C, and did not facilitate the proposed visit.
Notwithstanding the lack of access to Area C, I nevertheless had an opportunity in Ramallah to meet members of a Bedouin Palestinian community living in Area C, and who are at risk of displacement.
A visit to Gaza was not facilitated by Israel. This was a matter that was raised at a senior level with the Israeli Foreign Ministry at the time and addressed during my meeting with Foreign Minister Cohen.
Further to my visit, I will continue to work with partners in the EU and internationally, most immediately with a focus on addressing the current escalation.
