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Joint Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade debate -
Wednesday, 18 Nov 2015

Expressions of Sympathy Following Paris Attacks

Apologies have been received from Deputies Ruairí Quinn and Seán Crowe and Senator David Norris. I apologise for the early start. Unfortunately, the committee room is booked again at 11 a.m. by another committee as the Finance Bill is before the Houses. We must therefore try to get this meeting concluded as quickly as we can.

Before we start, I am sure all members will wish to reflect briefly on the tragic events in Paris last Friday night. I express my own sympathy and condolences to the families of those killed and injured and to the people of France and those countries whose citizens have been affected by the terrible attacks. It is very sad that such a barbaric event was thrust upon innocent people going about their daily lives. It is up to the people of Europe and the world to stand together and ensure a solution is found to stop future tragedies. I propose that the joint committee writes to the French ambassador, H.E. Jean-Pierre Thébault, to express the joint committee's sympathies and condolences. Is that agreed? Agreed. Does anybody wish to comment?

We all concur with the Chairman's views and his proposal. These attacks demonstrate the need for solidarity within the West and especially within the European Union. They are our brothers and sisters in the European Union and it is a family issue - an international family issue - for the European Union. As we express our condolences, we should also say that we are with them and that the terrorism visited on the French is visited on all of us who believe in freedom.

I join the Chairman and others in expressing our deepest sympathy to the families who have been bereaved as a result of this horrific attack on innocent people. Our thoughts are with those who have been badly injured. We wish them a speedy recovery. I agree that it is incumbent on us all to stand together in solidarity as it is incumbent on world leaders to come together to address the root causes of this mindless terrorism and to address the issues in Syria from which country a great deal of this is emanating. It is a wake-up call for us all. We all now realise how vulnerable we are every time we get into a plane or go to a large event, whether it is a football match or concert. Now is the time for cool heads and a coming together of world leaders and the European Union to address this issue and bring about a satisfactory outcome for everybody.

I would like to join with the Chairman in expressing my condolences to the people of France and to the families of those who lost loved ones in the horrific attacks in Paris. Of course, our concern must now be how we can prevent future attacks. We have had many reports of citizens from the UK and Ireland going to Syria to join the fight with Islamic State. Their modus operandi is to send those people back to their home countries to perpetrate attacks similar to those in Paris in other European countries, including Ireland. We need to ensure that that does not happen. I propose that at some stage we should have the relevant leaders of various State agencies, the Garda Síochána and the Defence Forces in here to outline what they are doing to prevent this.

It has been pointed out for many years that there are elements within the communities in Ireland who will assist Islamic State in perpetrating these attacks in other countries, but who could do it here too. There is no point in having more motions of sympathy about deaths in Ireland. We must prevent those deaths and attacks in Ireland because it is highly foreseeable that people will return from Syria having fought there and their mission will be to carry out an attack here in Ireland. That is not beyond the bounds of possibility. That is what our intelligence services would tell us is going to happen, so our task now is to prevent it from happening.

The events in Paris were truly horrifying and were particularly targeted at ordinary people doing very ordinary things - the kinds of ordinary things we do at weekends. It has brought home the reality of life for people in places like Iraq, Afghanistan, Lebanon and Syria. They face that almost every day of their lives because there are suicide bombs and other bombings going on. The West now realises in a very real way what other people have been suffering and how vulnerable their lives are.

Prevention is a wider issue. We know that this all stemmed from a totally illegal invasion of Iraq. That has been acknowledged. The biggest protest was in Dublin, where 100,000 people marched against that invasion in 2003. That is where it stemmed from, so the powers that be must look at their actions, as well as the possible unintended consequences of those actions.

It was horrifying to read the release from ISIS, including the reasons and the way in which it described ordinary people doing ordinary things in Paris. I find it very difficult to understand how well educated girls from the West could go off to be jihadi brides, knowing that ISIS is totally against equality for women. It is against education for women or any sort of equal rights for women.

One does not fight fire with fire. While I can understand the rationale of the French wanting to do that, it is only going to create a worse situation. In that bombing there is absolutely no doubt that more civilian lives are being lost in Raqqa and other areas.

Our sympathies are with those who have been bereaved in Paris, Lebanon and elsewhere.

Would Deputy Mitchell like to comment on that briefly?

Absolutely. I want to join in what has been said and in expressing the horror we feel and the sympathy we have for the blameless dead in Paris. They were young people out enjoying themselves. I feel nothing but solidarity with them and the people of France generally.

I thank the members for their comments. I propose that we now go into private session. Is that agreed? Agreed.

The joint committee went into private session at 9.44 a.m. and resumed in public session at 9.50 a.m.
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