International Court of Justice and Genocide in Gaza: Motion [Private Members]

Deputy Matt Carthy

I move:

That Dáil Éireann:

expresses its deepest concern at the continued deterioration of the situation in Gaza and the resulting catastrophic humanitarian disaster with over 25,000 killed, thousands missing, almost two million people displaced, and massive destruction of housing and vital infrastructure, including hospitals and education facilities;

deeply deplores the major food insecurity on a massive scale, with United Nations (UN) agencies warning of imminent famine which will affect 400,000 people, the near collapse of the health system in large parts of Gaza with 65 per cent of hospitals now shut and the World Health Organisation warning of widespread death from preventable diseases;

reiterates its condemnation of the ongoing bombardment of Gaza by Israel;

further reiterates its calls for an immediate ceasefire, the immediate release of all hostages; and the urgent need for full, safe, and unhindered access for the delivery of humanitarian aid;

notes:

— the International Court of Justice (ICJ) proceedings instituted by South Africa under the Genocide Convention, and commends South Africa for its action in this regard: determining that it is valid to ask the ICJ to investigate whether there is a risk of genocide; and notes that other states have indicated their intention to participate in the case;

— that under Article I of the Genocide Convention the Contracting Parties are obliged to prevent genocide;

— that the Genocide Convention defines genocide as "any of the following acts committed with intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnical, racial or religious group, as such:

(a) Killing members of the group;

(b) Causing serious bodily or mental harm to members of the group;

(c) Deliberately inflicting on the group conditions of life calculated to bring about its physical destruction in whole or in part;

(d) Imposing measures intended to prevent births within the group;

(e) Forcibly transferring children of the group to another group";

— that Ireland is a Contracting Party to the Genocide Convention; and

— that the ICJ has held that "a State's obligation to prevent [genocide], and the corresponding duty to act, arise at the instant that the State learns of, or should normally have learned of, the existence of a serious risk that genocide will be committed";

— that the ICJ on 26th January, 2024 recognised:

— the right of Palestinians in Gaza to be protected from acts of genocide;

— that some rights claimed by South Africa are plausible; and

— that there is an urgency in that there is a real and imminent risk that irreparable prejudice will be caused to the rights found by the court to be plausible before it gives its final decision; and

— that the ICJ on 26th January, 2024 issued a binding order for provisional measures in the case taken by South Africa against Israel under the Genocide Convention, ordering Israel to:

— take all measures within its power to prevent the commission of acts within the scope of Article II of the Genocide Convention;

— take measures to prevent and punish direct incitement of genocide; and

— take immediate and effective measures to ensure the provision of urgently needed basic services and humanitarian assistance; and

calls on the Government to:

— call on Israel to immediately implement fully the provisional measures order, and to support efforts in the UN to promote, and take all necessary bilateral actions to ensure, this immediate implementation;

— file a declaration of intention to intervene in this case with the ICJ;

— commence the process of preparing for participation in the case, including drafting comprehensive written observations to submit at the relevant phase(s); and

— support the ICJ in its exercise of jurisdiction in this case, in particular to defend the Court, and by association the international rule of law, from any attacks on its performance of this duty, through any appropriate means necessary.

The order for provisional measures from the International Court of Justice, ICJ, on Friday last was historic. It brought clarity to a number of important points on South Africa's claims against Israel under the genocide convention. Crucially, the court clarified that the Palestinian people of Gaza are entitled to be protected from acts of genocide under the convention. It clearly stated that some of the claims made by South Africa are plausible. The court found that there is an urgency and a real and imminent risk of breaches of the articles of the genocide convention. In effect, the ICJ has found that genocide may or may imminently be committed by Israel against the Palestinian people of Gaza. That is why the court outlined the enforceable provisional measures and the only way to fulfil the order of the court is through a full, immediate and permanent ceasefire. Israel has again refused to cease fire.

The Irish Government can no longer deny it is aware of an imminent threat of genocide being committed. In fact, no government can. Therefore Ireland has a clear, unambiguous and urgent legal obligation to identify all measures available to the State to deter the commission by Israel of the grave crime of genocide. I note and welcome that the Government's position on this issue has changed since South Africa first indicated it would take this case, having initially categorically ruled out joining. I note that the Tánaiste has confirmed that he has asked his officials to prepare legal advice for his consideration on an urgent basis. I welcome that but it is too slow. What is required is leadership. South Africa has shown leadership and Ireland can and must do the same. It is not true to say, as some have, that Ireland can only indicate its intention to intervene after South Africa has submitted its substantive case. In the ICJ order in Ukraine v. Russian Federation of June last year, the court observed that the articles "...do not restrict the right of intervention to a particular phase of proceedings or to a certain type of provision in a convention."

The Government can and should send a clear message to the world by adopting the Sinn Féin motion. The Government's amendment, again, seeks to long-finger the necessary action and is simply not good enough. The Government can and should file a declaration of intention to intervene in this case with the ICJ. It can immediately commence the process for participation in this case. That is what the Sinn Féin motion calls for. The Government amendment changes definitive actions to considerations and potentialities. It lacks the urgency humanity requires and it lacks the urgency Ireland's obligations under the genocide convention demand. Whenever proposals are brought before this Dáil that serve to hold Israel accountable for its decades of blatant international law or for the recent barbaric assault on Gaza, the Government's response is often to wait for others. Whether they be political, diplomatic, economic or trade measures, we are told the Government is trying to find partners. That would be fair enough if partners were willing to present themselves. Given last Friday's ICJ ruling and the judgment that there is a plausible risk of genocide, we cannot wait for others. Our obligation is to use every mechanism available to us to stop and prevent that genocide.

Look, for comparison, at the speedy and disgraceful response to Israel's allegations in respect of UNRWA by what Israel would consider to be its allies. Remember that UNRWA is the last lifeline to the Gazan people. Within minutes of Israel making those allegations, vital funding was suspended, which undoubtedly led to further hardship for the Palestinian people, something I thought impossible. Compare that with the response of those who claim to be friends of Palestinians, upholders of international laws and defenders of the UN Charter. More than 25,000 people have been killed and 2 million have been displaced. A humanitarian crisis of biblical proportions is unfolding before our eyes and the Government says it will strongly consider taking action. Last Friday the International Court of Justice put the world, and indeed Ireland, on notice. Today, Ireland must respond not with more consideration of doing things but with action that actually forces Israel to stop the slaughter.

Deputy Pearse Doherty

This is day 116 of Israel's brutal, indiscriminate and merciless war against the people of Gaza. It is a bombardment that has stolen the lives of men, women and children with the Israeli war machine and its Government killing more than 26,000 civilians. More than 18,000 of them are women and children. Some 1.9 million people have been displaced with those who have so far survived this onslaught enduring inhumane conditions that we cannot ever comprehend. Tens of thousands of children have been orphaned. Hospitals, ambulances, schools and homes have been targeted, destroyed, and reduced to rubble. Before the eyes of the world, Israel has unleashed a storm of death and destruction from which no Palestinian man, woman or child can escape. There has not been a more lethal military campaign in recent times and much of the world has watched on with the Israeli Government acting with impunity and without a trace of morality or respect for human life.

Sinn Féin stands with the Palestinian people. Ireland stands with the Palestinian people. Our support for the cause of Palestinian freedom and justice has never wavered and has never been stronger. It is time for this Dáil and this Government to stand with them and hold the Israeli Government, a government fuelled by racist hate and genocidal intent, to account. My party and I commend Deputy Carthy, who has brought this motion before the Dáil, as he did in November, calling on the Government to refer Israel to the International Criminal Court for its onslaught on Gaza and its population. Regrettably, the Government opposed that call at the time.

We commend the action of South Africa in bringing a case against Israel before the International Court of Justice under the genocide convention because it is crystal clear that the only way to give effect to the ICJ judgment is for a full and permanent ceasefire. The court found that South Africa had a plausible case and that Israel has a case to answer for violations under the genocide convention. It is now time for this Government to act on behalf of the Irish people and to join South Africa in its case to hold Israel to account for its crimes against the Palestinian people. Israeli impunity must end and justice must prevail.

Deputy Kathleen Funchion

When we talk about the situation in Gaza and in Palestine, it is nearly getting to the stage where we run out of words to describe the horrors we are witnessing. For a lot of people the fact that this is televised and is not some historical war we are reading about in history books and we actually see this live on social media and television makes it very difficult for ordinary, decent people to understand how on earth Israel is still getting away with the horrific, disgusting acts of genocide it is engaged in.

At the end of December the official figure for the number of Palestinian children who have been killed in Gaza was 8,663. As we are almost into February, that figure has obviously risen. I will put it in context for people, because sometimes in this House when we talk about figures in any way, shape or form we can forget that behind those figures, every single person has their own story. For the county of Clare the population of children under the age of five is 8,803 and in Waterford the population of children under the age of five is 8,316. It is basically the equivalent of everybody under the age of five being wiped out. That is how many children have been killed to the end of December, so more children have been killed since then.

We know the UN has called the besieged Palestinian enclave a "graveyard for children" due to the high casualty figures. We also know that, according to UNICEF, approximately 1,000 children have had one or both legs amputated and often in unbelievable conditions that I do not think we can even contemplate in terms of no anaesthetic and no medicines being available. When we talk about this we should all think of our own children, grandchildren, nieces, nephews or whatever children we know in our lives. Can you imagine if they were left in that situation, whereby their choice was potentially losing a limb without correct medical care or death?

That is what the children of Palestine have been subjected to, so it is vital that Ireland stands shoulder to shoulder with the people of Palestine and that we put our names to this case. South Africa is to be commended on its action. It is important that we stand on the right side, fully support the Palestinian people and that we put our names to this case. That is what everybody in this country wants us to do as well. We have all been asked to ensure that we do this, so that it is not just empty words, but that we take action to show we want the slaughter and genocide to end.

Deputy Darren O'Rourke

The Irish people have watched in horror as Gaza faces annihilation. Missiles rain down upon 2 million people who have been denied food, fuel and water in one of the most densely populated areas of the world. Israel acts with impunity through its indiscriminate slaughter of a trapped population. Entire families have been killed in their beds while many more are trapped in the rubble. More than 26,000 people have been killed. Some 2 million have been displaced in an event that resembles the Nakba of 1948. This cannot and must not continue.

In Sinn Féin, we believe that every diplomatic, legislative and political option must be deployed in order to deliver a full, unequivocal and immediate ceasefire. Today's motion to join South Africa in its ICJ case against Israel represents a significant opportunity to send a message from Ireland to the world, one which states in unequivocal terms that Ireland believes in international law, that we stand for peace and humanity and that we will not stand idly by as a plausible case of genocide is taking place, as last Friday's initial ruling of the South African case confirmed. Universal backing of this motion by all TDs across this House, Government and Opposition alike, would represent an opportunity to be on the right side of history and to uphold the principles which should underpin our collective sense of how we value human life. Now is not the time to be silent. Now is the time to uphold Ireland's obligation to prevent genocide.

Any doubt the Taoiseach had as to whether the people of Gaza have the right to protection under the genocide convention should now be well and truly eliminated. The reality is that this Government's rhetoric has not been matched by action. It has repeatedly ignored numerous calls and proposals from Sinn Féin and others. It declined to refer Israel to the ICC. It failed to progress the Illegal Israeli Settlements Divestment Bill. It failed to progress the occupied territories Bill. It failed to deliver on its own programme for Government commitment to recognise the state of Palestine. The list goes on. This evening's motion represents an opportunity to take a different approach, to take decisive action to hold Israel to account and to implement a full, unequivocal and immediate ceasefire. I implore the Government to support it.

Deputy Rose Conway-Walsh

Last Friday, the International Court of Justice made a historic ruling. It ordered Israel to take action to prevent acts of genocide in Gaza. The court said Israel must stop killing Palestinians and causing serious physical and mental harm to them. Israel must also prevent its troops from committing genocide, prevent incitement to commit genocide, allow more humanitarian aid into Gaza and take action to preserve evidence of genocide.

There is no doubt Israel is breaking international law every day in slaughtering tens of thousands of Palestinians, but it now faces the charge of genocide in The Hague. The only way to give effect to this court ruling is an immediate ceasefire. As Israel's destruction of Gaza and slaughter of Palestinians continues, it is ignoring the International Court of Justice and its role in genocide. Political leaders around the world that fail to call for an immediate ceasefire are going against the court as it works to prevent genocide. Every state has a responsibility to adhere to international law. It is not an optional extra. No convention is as important as the one on genocide. Ireland has a moral responsibility to do all it can to stop genocide. The Government must now say it will intervene on the side of South Africa, file a declaration of intention to intervene with the ICJ and begin the preparation for a legal submission on the side of South Africa and the Palestinian people. This Government cannot say it did not know. History will judge it by its actions or lack of action to support Palestine at this time.

Deputy Chris Andrews

Last Friday the International Court of Justice made a decisive ruling. It ruled that South Africa has a plausible case against Israel for the crime of committing genocide. It is imperative that Ireland acts and joins South Africa in this case. lreland and the EU have a duty to promote, protect and support peace and stability in the region. We must make the terror state of Israel an outcast among the international community. The EU must mirror its reaction to Russia's brutal war on Ukraine. We must see an EU-wide ban on athletes and teams representing the apartheid state of Israel. Sports cannot simply continue as if this genocide is not happening. The Irish Government should be standing by our athletes who do not want to compete against Israel.

The Olympic committee stood on the right side of history in the 1960s when it barred apartheid South Africa. It is now time for the Olympic committee once again to take a stand against apartheid and ban Israel for participating in the upcoming Olympic Games. It is clear that the Olympic committee will not do this off its own bat. We need the Minister for Foreign Affairs and other EU states to call publicly on the Olympic committee to act and to stand by its declaration against "apartheid in sport", a declaration that calls for the total isolation of apartheid in sport.

We also need the Olympic Federation of Ireland to take action and step forward. I commend the members of the Irish basketball team who are refusing to play against Israel next month. Basketball Ireland, which backed the sporting boycott of Russia, should now call for the same against Israel. Basketball Ireland should be standing by its players and calling on FIBA, basketball's world governing body, to ban Israel from competing due to the crimes of its government.

History has shown us the strength of sport in fighting injustice and breaking apartheid. The message from Ireland needs to be loud and clear: "Don't play with Apartheid."

Deputy John Brady

As we sit here this evening, more than 26,750 Palestinians have already been killed in Gaza. A further 65,636 have been wounded since 7 October. Some 2 million Palestinians are displaced, with thousands more missing, many buried under rubble. On average, Israel is killing 250 Palestinians per day in Gaza. This represents a higher daily rate than any other 21st century armed conflict. Israeli attacks have killed one out of every 100 Palestinians in Gaza and injured at least two Palestinians in every 100, often with life-altering wounds, while it continues to deny access to medical or rescue teams in areas where it is operating in Gaza. These numbers will continue to grow unless pressure is brought to bear on Israel in the form of international censure.

Gaza is being dismantled house by house, street by street, school by school, and hospital by hospital. The failure to impose sanctions on Israel must be measured against the haste with which so many western countries acted to suspend funding to UNRWA, which has had 152 personnel killed since the start of the attack on Gaza. That is a decision that will do more than anything else to compound human suffering and undermine regional stabilisation goals on the ground. These actions are viewed as a collective punishment of Palestinians in Gaza, many of whom are dependent on the 154 aid centres set up by UNRWA for refuge. Many of the countries that have cut funding to UNRWA continue funding the Israeli military regime as it continues its genocide. They are hypocrites.

The Government has said it will engage with South Africa in the coming months on whether it will intervene in the genocide case against Israel. The Palestinian people do not have four or six months.

They have not got a week. They are dying in their thousands. The Government is morally bound to support Sinn Féin's motion this evening, which will mandate Ireland to do the right thing and support the South African case against Israel under the genocide convention. We cannot continue to sit on the fence concerning acts of international crime and genocide. We heard the Tánaiste's words of concern and condemnation in the past. It is time to get off the fence now and to take definitive action and stand up for the Palestinian people once and for all at a time that matters.

Minister for Foreign Affairs (Deputy Micheál Martin)

I move amendment No. 2:

To insert the following after "ongoing bombardment of Gaza by Israel;":

"reiterates its unequivocal condemnation of the brutal terrorist attack by Hamas on Israel on 7th October, 2023";

to delete "call on Israel to immediately implement fully" and substitute "reiterate its call on Israel to immediately implement fully";

to delete "file a declaration of intention to intervene in this case with the ICJ;" and substitute the following:

"urgently consider filing a declaration of intervention in this case with the ICJ, based on a legal analysis of the Genocide Convention, the Court's provisional measures order and consultation with other Contracting Parties;"; and

to delete "commence the process of preparing for participation in the case" and substitute "commence the process of preparing for potential participation in the case".

All of us in this House are united in our view that what is happening in Gaza must stop. There should and must be a ceasefire. All of us and all of the Irish people are appalled by what we see unfolding. A total of 1.9 million people have been displaced from their homes and have nowhere safe to go. At least 10,000 of the 26,000 Palestinians who have been killed in Gaza since October are children. Moreover, 90% of the 2.3 million people in Gaza are now acutely food insecure and the UN is warning of a real risk of famine. No one in this House believes that any of this is acceptable. We all want an immediate ceasefire, the immediate and unconditional release of hostages and a massive scale-up in humanitarian assistance. We are agreed on these fundamental objectives The question is what is the most effective way of making them happen. I have been clear from the start of this horrible conflict that Ireland needs to use all the tools we have at our disposal - political, legal, diplomatic and humanitarian. That is the approach the Government has taken from the start.

It is why we were one of the first countries in the European Union to call for a humanitarian ceasefire and why we voted for UN General Assembly resolutions in November and December that reiterated this call, made immediate additional humanitarian funding available for Palestine and worked day and night to facilitate 56 Irish citizens to leave Gaza and to secure the release of Emily Hand. It is why I travelled to the region in November and met Egyptian, Palestinian and Israeli leaders and spent many hours talking to EU counterparts and Arab leaders about how we can bring an end to the misery in Gaza. It is why I told the Israeli Minister for Foreign Affairs at the EU Foreign Affairs Council last week that we believed some of its military actions in Gaza amounted to war crimes and that its disinformation and delegitimisation campaign against the United Nations was unacceptable and must stop. It is why our Attorney General will travel to The Hague next month to participate in the proceedings at the International Court of Justice on a case on the legality of Israel’s policies and practices in the occupied Palestinian territories. It is why Ireland has been at the forefront of pushing for European Union sanctions against violent settlers displacing Palestinian communities in the West Bank and why I am in ongoing consultations with Jordan and other Arab partners about a potential Arab peace plan and how Ireland and other like-minded European Union states can contribute to it. I was the first Foreign Minister in the world to express my full confidence in the UNRWA Commissioner-General on Saturday when news of the possible participation of a small number of UNRWA employees in the heinous attacks of 7 October broke and others were deciding to halt funding to UNRWA’s essential work. It is why the Government and I will take a serious, rigorous and informed approach to South Africa’s case against Israel at the International Court of Justice under the genocide convention.

We will not be distracted by political posturing or one-upmanship. The Government will analyse the issue thoroughly and then make its decision. Our approach to this conflict and our efforts to do everything possible to end it are widely admired and respected internationally. I do not doubt the sincerity and strength of feeling in this House about the situation in Gaza, which reflects the deep sense of solidarity with Palestinian people felt by Irish people. I cannot help but be puzzled by the disconnect between what I hear in this Chamber and what I hear internationally. What we heard from the Opposition benches last week and a bit tonight is that the Government should somehow be ashamed of not doing enough, of not representing the will of the Irish people and of letting down the Palestinian people or being on the fence, as was just said. Shame is not the word I hear outside this House from our partners in Palestine and across the Arab world and the global south or from the UN agencies and civil society organisations we work with. What I hear from them is gratitude for the principled position taken by Ireland, our tireless work and advocacy internationally and our political, financial, diplomatic and moral support for Palestine. I hear requests for us to maintain our position and to continue to be a principled and effective voice within the European Union, the United Nations and in bilateral contacts. I value these voices, not because they tell me what I want to hear but because they remind me that what we are doing matters and that we have impact, particularly if we can bring others with us.

I made very clear last week how the Government intended to proceed in relation to South Africa’s case against Israel at the ICJ. We will analyse the detail of the provisional measures ordered by the court last Friday. My officials in the Department of Foreign Affairs are undertaking this analysis as we speak. We are consulting with partners; indeed, officials from the Department of Foreign Affairs have already met their South African counterparts and I have spoken to a number of EU partners. Our South African partners indicate it will be four to five months before they submit their substantial case. We will consider whether to make an intervention in the right way and at the right time. This is the right approach - the only approach - if we are serious about delivering accountability. The International Court of Justice is not a debating society, it is a legal institution and the cornerstone of the international judicial system. The Opposition continues to call for Ireland to join or, as I think one Deputy said, to side with and be on the side of South Africa’s case, even though it knows this is not how the court works. Casual and inaccurate references to this case are profoundly unhelpful and irresponsible. They seek to sow division within this House and the wider public on an issue upon which there is broad unity. The 1948 genocide convention was drawn up and adopted in the immediate aftermath of the Second World War as a direct response to the unrivalled cataclysm of the Holocaust inflicted upon the Jewish people in Europe by Nazi Germany. Genocide was described as the "Denial of the right of existence of entire human groups", which "shocks the conscience of mankind" and, as such, constitutes a crime under international law. It is the gravest accusation. It should not be made lightly. This explains why, since 1948, only four other interstate cases have been initiated under the genocide convention before the International Court of Justice, one of which was to challenge an entirely false allegation of genocide and its use as a pretext for aggression.

Intervention as a third party in a case before the International Court of Justice is a complex matter and up to now has been relatively rare. Before Ukraine initiated proceedings against Russia under the genocide convention in 2022, only four states had ever sought to intervene under Article 63 of the court’s statute. Of those, the court declared only two of the interventions admissible. In respect of the Ukraine v. Russian Federation case, of the 32 interventions declared admissible, not one made a declaration of intervention before Ukraine had filed its memorial with the court, which itself was four months after the orders for provisional measures. We are doing exactly the same in respect of this particular case. Of course, the Ukraine case was quite different to that brought by South Africa as it was primarily focused on refuting Russia’s claim that it had invaded to prevent genocide within Ukraine. An intervention under Article 63 must satisfy a number of criteria to be deemed admissible by the court. The court has also interpreted the term "genocide" very narrowly, so that what might in ordinary parlance be described as genocide does not correspond with its definition under the genocide convention and its interpretation by the court.

These are the facts. They may not be facts that fit neatly into a slogan to be shouted or a 90-second clip for TikTok but they are important because any credible and admissible intervention in this case, or any other case, must respect them. If what we are seeking is accountability - there should be political accountability - rather than political grandstanding, it is essential that we do this properly. I repeat: this is exactly the same approach we took in relation to the Ukraine v. Russian Federation case.

For all these reasons, the Government has put forward a number of amendments to the motion. The amendments are clear and factual and reiterate the position we set out in the House last week. I have also asked my officials to provide technical briefings to Opposition Members to outline the substance of the genocide convention itself and the court’s rulings in previous cases. I also want to highlight how important it is that we do not lose sight of the need to hold all parties to this conflict to account for their actions. Irrespective of whether any of Israel’s actions are eventually judged by the ICJ to meet the threshold of genocide, the court cannot investigate the actions of Hamas, nor does this case comprehensively cover war crimes and crimes against humanity. This is where the role of the International Criminal Court, and the investigation by the ICC’s prosecutor, remains absolutely essential. This investigation covers the horrific events of 7 October as well as the current situation in Gaza. It also includes all potential crimes within the jurisdiction of the court from 2014 onwards, not only in Gaza but also in the West Bank and East Jerusalem, including genocidal acts. Rather than people saying we did not join, that case is on the way and the prosecutor is prosecuting.

The provision of urgently needed basic services and humanitarian assistance in Gaza was one of several important provisional measures ordered by the court. As the House will be aware, UNRWA is at the centre of humanitarian operations and basic services provision in Gaza. In the light of serious allegations that 12 UNRWA employees participated in the attacks of 7 October in Israel, the commissioner-general has immediately terminated the contracts of a number of employees. The UN will investigate thoroughly and as a matter of urgency. These allegations are extremely serious. If proven, the individuals concerned must be held to account; there can be no doubt about this. However, I am deeply concerned that many UNRWA donors have stopped funding with immediate effect and I have made clear that Ireland has no plans to suspend funding to the agency. I have full confidence in the agency's leadership to ensure that its zero-tolerance policy for anyone involved in violence or terror is upheld. The allegations that have been made are in respect of the actions of 12 staff members, in an organisation that employs 30,000 people, with 13,000 in Gaza alone. There has never been greater urgency for UNRWA to be able to fulfil its mandate. It is the only organisation with the capacity to deliver aid in sufficient quantities in Gaza. Some 2.3 million civilians in Gaza cannot be the ones to pay the price for possible criminal actions by 12 people.

Our focus today is on Gaza, and rightly so. However, we cannot lose sight of the wider regional environment. The potential for further escalation remains high. The attack on a US base in Jordan last weekend, with at least three US service people killed and many more injured, is unacceptable and deeply concerning. I condemn it and offer my sincere condolences to the US and to the families of those killed. All countries with influence in the region, not least those with influence on non-state actors, must use this for de-escalation. I have made the point repeatedly, including directly to the Iranian Foreign Minister, and I will continue to do so. In closing, I would like to reiterate that the Government’s focus will remain on using every avenue to end this conflict in Gaza. However remote the possibility may seem, the only possible solution can be through political means, through a process which respects the right of self-determination for the Palestinian people, and which delivers peace and security for Palestinians and Israelis alike.

Deputy Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire

I will pick up where the Tánaiste finished and share concern at the allegations made against UNRWA staff that they participated in the appalling attacks on 7 October. I echo what has been said in that the role of UNRWA is absolutely crucial. The threats that have been made and followed through on regarding funding by some donors are extremely worrying and are not at all proportionate to a situation where 400,000 people face famine. There have been 25,000 people killed; an enormous proportion of those - up to several thousand - children. At the outset of this, there was a lot of talk about a "humanitarian catastrophe" and that is an appropriate phrase in many ways. Where it does not sit well with me is the fact that humanitarian catastrophes are things we associate with earthquakes and tsunamis and so on. This is slaughter inflicted on a mass scale by the Israeli Government and the Israeli Defense Forces. The outcome at which we are looking goes far beyond the enormous direct slaughter, potential hunger, illness and huge human suffering. It is in that context that the demand for the ceasefire has been made - one such demand made by the Irish Government that I acknowledge and welcome - but has not been heeded by the Israeli Government and against which it is resisting international pressure. It is that context from which this motion comes and it is not seeking division unnecessarily. It is seeking to ensure that whatever mechanisms exist from this small but influential country, particularly in a European context and on this matter, can be used to exert whatever pressure we can. This is one particular avenue that is possible. It is not saying that it is possible to be achieved in the short term to become on the same terms as South Africa or anything like that, but it is a declaration of intent. I believe that can have an impact. It must be restated that there is an urgency to this. There is a huge urgency to this from the people of Gaza and that is why we should not accept the amendment and declare that intent to participate.

Deputy Louise O'Reilly

I thank my colleague, Teachta Matt Carthy, for bringing forward the motion and for his work on this matter on behalf of the Palestinian people. Last Friday's judgment from the ICJ was a huge event in this war. While the court may not have used the word "ceasefire", the only way its findings can be implemented is through a full, permanent and complete ceasefire. In one of the most important international court judgments of our time, the ICJ ruled that South Africa has a plausible case and that Israel has a case to answer in respect of violations of the genocide convention. The ruling demands action from the international community and if the Irish Government cannot lend its weight to the South African case, this will be a very sorry state of affairs. Ireland previously intervened in the case of Ukraine v. Russia taken under the genocide convention after an order of provisional measures was issued so why is the Government dragging its feet now? The failure of western countries to fully support the South African case exposes a deep hypocrisy regarding international law and adherence to a global rules-based order and Ireland should not be party to this hypocrisy. The failure of many western countries to call for a ceasefire or back the South African case has shown there is no global rules-based order. These actions are having an immediate and devastating impact on the Palestinian people who are being slaughtered at the hands of Israel in a manner that has few precedents this century. Let it be said that South Africa has put on trial, not just Israel for genocide, but the governments of all those states that stand idly by.

Now is the time for the Government on behalf of the Irish people to indicate that it will join with South Africa in its case to hold Israel accountable for its crimes against the Palestinian people. There are no more excuses. Israeli impunity must end. Unanimous support for the Sinn Féin motion this evening would send a huge message from Ireland, heard the world over, that we are firmly on the side of international law, international humanitarian law, and the Charter of the United Nations. The provisional ruling from the court on Friday demands action from the international community. South Africa has shown leadership. Now is the time for our Government to show the same leadership. The Tánaiste in his contribution used "I" more than 20 times, saying "I travelled ... I was the first Minister to ... I hear ... I value...". With the greatest of respect, this is not about the Tánaiste; it is about the nearly 27,000 dead Palestinians.

Deputy Johnny Mythen

I thank the South African Government and its legal team, especially the Irish barrister, Blinne Ní Ghrálaigh, for successfully seeking a provisional order from the ICJ to restrain Israel from committing potentially genocidal acts in Gaza. The highest court in the world has found there is a plausible risk that the Palestinians right to be protected from genocide is under threat from Israeli actions. This is an historic occasion for South Africa and the Palestinian people against the backdrop of enormous pressure piled on by Israel and her powerful allies, namely, America and the UK. The American Administration called the legal suit "meritless" and the British Government said it was "nonsense". The verdict of 15 judges to two in favour of South Africa's claim was an indictment of those flippant remarks. As a neutral nation, we must support the verdict of an international court of justice and stand by its findings and deliberations. The military atrocities being deliberately and consciously inflicted on the civilians in Gaza must be halted. The voices of all right-minded people of the world are crying out for peace and humanitarian aid for the Palestinian people and are calling for a permanent ceasefire on all sides. It is also time for the voices of the Irish people to be heard. In their thousands, they are demanding that the Irish Government stand with South Africa and file a declaration of intention to intervene in this case with the ICJ.

Ireland, as a contracting party to the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, must play its part in stopping the horrific and inhumane actions by Israel on an entire civilian population of 2 million. Now is the time to stand up and call it out as it is. The attack on 7 October was terribly wrong. The actions after that date by Israel have gone way beyond retribution, revenge and even beyond sanity itself. We ask all Deputies to support this motion and for Ireland to take its rightful place and summon up the courage to join with South Africa and other like-minded countries to file a declaration of intent to intervene on this historic case with the ICJ.

Deputy Réada Cronin

The ICJ ruling on South Africa's case was momentous and historic, with jurisdiction granted and conditions of plausible genocide accepted and Israel's attempt to have the case thrown out emphatically rejected. Israel remains on trial in the matter of the genocide of the Palestinian people. If the State of Israel was an ordinary criminal rather than alleged war criminal and was in front of any national court, it would essentially be out on bail with the world's warmongers putting up its bail bond.

I want to put on record the name of Irishwoman Blinne Ní Ghrálaigh KC, who presented part of South Africa's case, and how proud we are of her outstanding work. Yet, while the compassionate world held its breath for the interim order from the ICJ, an army of Israeli supporters was ready to press "Send" on the UNRWA disclosures. What gall they had with their timing, showing their naked calculation, slyness and cynicism, with more than 12,000 children massacred and whole families removed from the civil registry in Gaza.

I thank the Tánaiste for the position he took on the UNRWA funding and for the clear and unambiguous statement that he made on Ireland's behalf. Credit where credit is due. He did right. This not the time for equivocation. The lives of 2 million people depend on that aid. Ireland will not be part of any group that will consign the entire population of Gaza to what the ICJ considers plausible conditions of genocide. The evidence is there, evidence that puts America, Canada, the UK and most of the EU on the wrong side of history, and they will have questions to answer.

I also have a question for the media. Now that the ICJ has accepted and quoted the Gazan figures already annihilated by Israel, perhaps they might wonder why they refer to those murdered as Hamas-run health ministry figures? What are they afraid of? Too many journalists have been killed in Gaza. We cannot let journalism be murdered too. The ICJ interim findings have changed everything. We are all complicit unless we act now. Ireland must support South Africa against a deranged Israeli Administration high on slaughter and high on genocide. "Never again" is now; it is not in six months' time.

Deputy Aodhán Ó Ríordáin

It is very hard to know where to start, considering we had a similar debate last week. It is true what the Tánaiste said, in that in the international community, Ireland is viewed as one of the most critical voices of Israeli aggression. When one lives in Ireland, one can only influence what one can with regard to the Government's response. Ireland may be going further than anyone else but that is not a very high bar, considering the moral and political collapse of any sort of decency that we, perhaps, would have previously expected from celebrated institutions and political entities such as the EU, US and UK. We have to constantly remind ourselves of this moral collapse, especially as it comes so soon after the uniformity of response to the Russian aggression in Ukraine. This is not about only speaking about our enemies; this is also about speaking about our supposed friends.

I call on any of us who have any influence with anybody who is cheerleading this to speak those uncomfortable words, not just in Europe but also in the US and the UK. What the Tánaiste said with regard to the UNRWA funding is fair enough. It is commendable but, at the same time, it should not really be questioned. What we are facing and witnessing is unprecedented, and is not going to stop. What is being cheerled and the bloodthirsty nature of the announcements from Israeli politicians really makes me wonder where and how it will end. They have no encouragement from anybody to end it because they have had no encouragement from anybody for more than 50 years to change tack. They have absolute support from many countries in the EU. They have absolute support in the UK and, as we know, in the US.

I speak about uncomfortable conversations because all bets are off on the international diplomacy scene here when it comes to this "conflict", as people are calling it. The word "conflict" gives the impression of two equals going at it. Let us call it what it is: it is a genocide. It is an absolute annihilation of a people. We can only assume that the ambition here is to settle the land and end Gaza as a residential territory for the Palestinian people who Israel has been smothering since 2005.

I will make this point again, and I made it last week. We in the Irish Labour Party have our responsibility to speak truth to power in the British Labour Party. I will be quite frank, and I said it last week. I have said it to the media today and I will repeat it here. Keir Starmer will not be welcome at any Labour Party event in Ireland considering the cowardice he has shown in the face of evil and genocide. He has not called for a ceasefire. His words were weak. Maybe he is reflecting on an issue of antisemitism in the British Labour Party but that is not excuse enough. It is not excuse enough for somebody who purports to be the leader of the United Kingdom and a potential prime minister. We expect better. He is wrong and he has to be called out for that.

I expect members of Fine Gael in the European People's Party to call out people like Ursula von der Leyen. A report from Naomi O'Leary of The Irish Times last week stated that Ursula von der Leyen and Roberta Metsola flew to Israel to show solidarity, right after the Israeli Minister of Defense Gallant ordered a complete siege on Gaza, including "no electricity, no food, no fuel". This quote was read out by the ICJ as plausible evidence of incitement to genocide - no electricity, no food, no fuel. That was from the Israeli Minister of Defense. How is a child supposed to survive with no electricity, no food or no fuel? The Israelis are engineering a famine. We know that of the 25,000 people who have been murdered, half of them are children, and the Israelis are not going to stop.

When it comes to the influence that we may have in the US, the Minister of State is going to have to get his head around how uncomfortable it is for Irish people to witness Irish Ministers going to the US and to the White House, and engaging in that sort of diplomacy in a kind of light-hearted manner with the administration that is funding this. It is easy for the Opposition to say they should not go but some indication will have to be given of what they and the Government are going to say. If Ministers were not to go, they would be congratulated by the Labour Party and we would support them in that. I acknowledge the relationship we have with the United States is a very long and valued one but if Joe Biden was to come here next week, we would not sit in these seats. We just would not be able to countenance welcoming Joe Biden, with all his Irish-American background, into this Chamber considering what he is funding, what his administration is weaponising and the genocide he is overseeing. We would not be able to do it, and others in the Dáil and representatives of political parties who intend to attend the White House reception need to reflect on their positions as well.

I applaud the statement by Colum Eastwood of the SDLP that he will not be there. That is the right approach.

All of these issues are incredibly emotional and incredibly difficult. I repeat that taking action is not just down to the Minister of State but to all of us. It is not just down to the Government; it is down to civil society, trade unions and the Irish people to make a determination of what we feel should be our ongoing relationship with Israel and how we can halt what it is doing. Its actions may come to an end. There may be a resolution, a ceasefire and diplomacy but this discussion will keep going because we will return to it until Israel is completely isolated as the rogue nation we now believe it to be. Many of us have considered it to be in that category for quite a long time. As I said here last week, until there is a complete and total diplomatic, economic, artistic and sporting boycott of everything Israeli, that country is not going to stop. I say that not because I want the destruction of the State of Israel, which I and the Labour Party do not. Others may want that but we do not. We must hold fast to the idea of the two-state solution, which has, of course, been completely ruled out by Netanyahu.

I am making a call for all of us to do what we can. In the case of the South African boycott that happened when I was a child, it was the women of Dunnes Stores who made the initial step in saying they would not handle the fruit that came from an apartheid nation. There is the same responsibility on all of us today. We must all call out what we see as right or wrong, as evil or as genocide. We are all trying to live in communities and bring up children. We all find ourselves turning off the television in case our children see the scenes from Gaza and wonder why there are bloodied children and where the parents of those children are. That is the world in which we are raising our children. They do not understand how this could be happening.

We shield our own children from this horror that is happening hundreds of miles way. Some people, unfortunately, cannot shield their children from it. It was stated eloquently in the House last week - I cannot remember by whom; it possibly was Deputy McDonald - that Israeli and US politicians are signing missiles, while Palestinian mothers are writing their children's names on their arms in order that they can be identified if they are found dead. That is the scale of the depravity, genocide and evil we are witnessing. We must support the South African case but we have to do more than that. We must end our relationship with Israel, not because we want that country to end but because we want its barbarism, evil, apartheid and murder to end.

Deputy Gary Gannon

I begin with a lesser point in the scale of what we are discussing. This is the third week in a row we have discussed the International Court of Justice, the highest court in global affairs, at which a case regarding genocide is being considered. On each occasion, the Tánaiste has been present to listen to one speaker before leaving the House. We do not operate a Westminster-style of politics. We have a multi-party system. In his contribution, the Tánaiste raised other contributions that were made last week and that involved fallacies. I would have liked him to dispute those fallacies but, once again, he left the Chamber. There is an element of cowardice in that, despite how much he protests against such a charge.

The ICJ has given its preliminary ruling. It has ruled by an overwhelming majority that it is plausible that a genocide is being inflicted upon the Palestinian people by the State of Israel. The enormity of that charge is absolutely incredible. We should all take a step back to consider the times in which we are living. The Tánaiste fails time and again to mention, despite how impassioned he is and how he disputes the rhetoric from the Opposition and suggests we are trying to divide the House, that there is one obligation contained within the genocide convention, which we have ratified, and it is the obligation to act to prevent genocide. That is the sole requirement of a signatory state when it considers that another state is complicit or potentially complicit in that most heinous of acts. We have an obligation to act. That requirement is often left out of the discussion.

In the past couple of days, it has been highlighted in international commentary and by some Members of this House that the ICJ did not order a ceasefire, as South Africa had strongly requested. The fact it did not do so is a manifestation of how purposefully constrained the court was. The International Court of Justice does not have the authority to call for ceasefires. It is a judicial body that settles legal disputes between states and provides advisory opinions on legal questions referred to it by the United Nations or specialised agencies. Ceasefires are typically negotiated through diplomatic channels or international organisations involved in conflict resolution. The court only has jurisdiction to consider issues in cases where countries have explicitly agreed to its authority over them.

In the current litigation, the court was able to consider the case only on the basis that both South Africa and Israel are state parties to the genocide convention. This meant South Africa had to frame its application through a genocide lens and the court had no power to go beyond the obligations arising out of that treaty. It also explains why the court could not, for example, order Hamas to release all the remaining Israeli hostages. Equally, the term "self-defence" was notably missing from the ruling precisely because of how contested that term may legally be in occupied territory zones. For these reasons, the ruling focused on addressing the horrendous conditions on the ground in Gaza.

The court did order Israel to take all measures in its power to prevent genocide and to enable the provision of urgently needed basic services and humanitarian assistance to address the adverse conditions faced by Palestinians in Gaza. One of the orders delivered by the court was for members of the Israeli Government to cease their genocidal rhetoric. It was an important statement by the court but it was broken within a day. At the weekend, 11 Ministers in the Israeli Government attended a conference calling for the Israeli settlement of the Gaza Strip. Detailed maps were displayed showing where settlements in Gaza would be established. Among the Israeli Ministers to attend were the national security minister, Itamar Ben-Gvir, and the finance minister, Bezalel Smotrich. Ben-Gvir was appointed national security minister despite having convictions for incitement to racism and supporting a terrorist organisation.

The Taoiseach was asked today in the Chamber by my party leader, Deputy Cairns, whether travel bans that may be extended to extremist Israeli settlers, which we have been advocating for in the past week, should include members of the Israeli Government. The Taoiseach completely and utterly ignored the question. I would love if somebody could answer that question for me as part of this conversation. If we are advocating travel bans for extremist settlers, will members of the Israeli Government, particularly those I just referenced and who broke the order of the ICJ on Saturday, be included in those travel bans? It is a very simple question.

The orders issued by the court fell within the genocide jurisdiction because the treaty defines "genocide" as not only direct killing but also "[d]eliberately inflicting on the group conditions of life calculated to bring about its physical destruction in whole or in part". An immediate ceasefire would go a long way toward Israel complying with those orders. As such, the calls for a ceasefire are well made, despite the court not having the power to order one. A big fear for all of us is that, eventually, we will see the US and the UK - I hope we do not join them - slapping themselves on the back because they finally got Netanyahu to stop slaughtering and massacring in Gaza. They will claim it as a victory but what will be left? I hope the Government does not join them in heralding some victory of statesmanship. That is not what it will be.

There is absolutely nothing stopping us, at this very moment in time, from initiating our own discrete case against Israel for the crime of genocide, which the ICJ might then decide to align to South Africa's case. I made this point in both my contributions last week and I reiterate it today. Why are we standing back and letting the sole responsibly for standing up for the rules-based order of the global system, which was developed following the horrendous and unimaginable horrors of the Holocaust, to fall to South Africa? The Irish Government can enact our own discrete case. We can do that. We do not have to wait six months to intervene. We do not have to wait out the process of the legal scrutiny of South Africa's 82-page document.

We can actually enact our own. There are two very real places where can do this. Our histories present a legitimacy and a moral position to hold states accountable for atrocities they commit against another. South Africa built its case around the obvious genocidal rhetoric used by Israeli Government officials. Our expertise is different. I will say it again; the use of large-scale munitions in an urban environment is a treaty we brought together in 2022. Bombs of 2,000 lbs. are being dropped on Gaza several times a day, every single day. If that is not being complicit in genocidal intent, I do not know what is. We could make a case based on that ourselves. The court could then decide to align it with the South Africa case. It would ensure that more resources and time from the court were allocated to the scrutiny. It would not be solely based around South Africa's case. Alternatively, we could act in accordance with our history of enforced famine that decimated our population in the 1840s and that was fuelled by a colonial oppressor.

The United Nations is warning of an immediate risk of famine for 400,00 people in Gaza. We could make our own discrete case that would fall within the genocide jurisdiction because the treaty defines genocide as not only direct killing, but also deliberately inflicting on the group conditions of life calculated to bring about its physical destruction in whole, or in part. Hunger is being used in Gaza as a weapon of genocide. We can legally intervene here. We do not have to wait. We can engage with this.

I want to touch very briefly on the very serious allegations that were made against UNRWA in the last couple of days. Serious allegations require investigation but 17 states withdrawing funding from the population of Palestine and Gaza in particular, which is facing famine, is extraordinarily cruel. It belies the real intention. The ICJ delivered a ruling on Friday last that genocide was probably happening in Gaza. Within a couple days, allies of Israel such as the United States came out and were able to highlight that 12 UNRWA workers may have been complicit in the horrors of 7 October. They did so to remove from the headlines the fact that Israel had been found to be potentially committing genocide. The allegations are serious and require investigation but where exactly is the line? How come we did not see the same degree of multilateral expressions of horror when 130 journalists and their families in Gaza have been targeted? Nine UNRWA workers have been charged and 12 are suspected of being involved in these crimes but 125 UN workers have also been killed in Gaza. What about the universities that have been obliterated so that the Palestinian story will not be told for generations; literally being bombed? What about the fact that schools are being targeted and hospitals wiped from the map? Do we not get the same universal horror because of those atrocities?

Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett

The first thing I want to do is say that tomorrow at 5.30 p.m. a demonstration organised by anti-war and Palestine solidarity groups including Mothers Against Genocide, The Anti-war Movement, the Union of Students in Ireland, Irish Palestine Solidarity and many others will be assembling at the European Commission offices on Mount Street to march to Leinster House. They will be calling once again on the Government to take the opportunity to do what it should have done when it was first asked in November, to discharge its responsibilities under the Genocide Convention to act to prevent genocide.

No matter how much the Government attempts to obfuscate the complex legal character of joining the case versus intervening in the case, that is all nonsense. The convention was drawn up to prevent genocide. All signatories to the Genocide Convention are required - as soon as they are put on notice that a genocide may be under way - to act and do everything in their power to prevent the commission of genocide. That is what the signatories are required to do. What has Ireland done to prevent the commission of genocide, to deter Israel from continuing what the world court has now said is a prima facie case of genocide against Israel for the massacre it has conducted in Gaza in front of the eyes of the world? The court made very clear that Israel has committed some of the acts alleged. Its job is to then look at the evidence and say if it constitutes genocide. It has accepted that it might. Once this is possible and the court has put countries on notice that a genocide is possibly taking place, because it is not in a position to make a final adjudication, we can all look at it and say that it is obvious that it fits the definitions of genocide. We look at the barbaric incitement of Israeli ministers, the prime minister, generals and officials. They have said things like "we are going to burn Gaza". They have called Palestinians animals and Amalekites. They have cut off food, water and electricity and bombed schools, hospitals and water infrastructure, and assassinated people in the street who were carrying white flags. They have been told to move en masse - which is ethnic cleansing - to safe areas and then they have bombed the safe areas. It just goes on. What does the world do? Nothing.

It is very important to say, and this will relate to the issue about going to Washington and so on, once you have been put on notice that a genocide may be taking place, if you assist in acts that may then be genocide subsequently, you are complicit with those acts. Other people should be in the frame and indeed it might be a case we should taking about the complicity of the United States, Britain and states that are continuing to arm Israel. They are sending them the missiles to rain down death and destruction on men, women and children. Biden boosted the $3 billion annual subsidy the United States gives to Israel mostly for weapons, mostly to kill Palestinians, to $14 billion when Israel said it was going to attack Gaza. They are complicit. They should be in the Hague as well for war crimes.

Are we seriously going to go over and shake hands with somebody who is proactively and enthusiastically arming a state that is now in the dock for a genocide that we can see in front of our eyes? Are we seriously going to gladhand them on our national day? I say this to all members of the Government and our colleagues in Sinn Féin and anybody else who is considering it. When Bernadette McAliskey was given the freedom of New York City, she went over to America alright but she gave the key to the city to the Black Panthers, because it was during the time of the civil rights movement. She stood with the oppressed who were being beaten down by the American Government at the time. That is the tradition we should be standing in. We should be standing with the oppressed. The big problem with all of this is that none of it would have happened - 7 October and all the rest of it would not have happened - if the international community had not given impunity to Israel for decades of apartheid, occupation and the 16-year criminal siege of Gaza , which in itself is a crime against humanity and a collective punishment, long before 7 October. Tonight, as we speak, Israeli commandos have gone into a hospital and assassinated people in their beds, including somebody who was paralysed. These people are deranged and they have been given the licence to carry out this horror against the Palestinian people for decades by the United States, Europe and every other state that treated it as a normal state instead of doing what was finally done to apartheid South Africa.

I spoke on a platform at the weekend in London at a Stop the War Coalition event with Andrew Feinstein a former MP for the ANC. He is from a Jewish background and 39 members of his family were slaughtered in Auschwitz. He stood up at the rally and said the proudest moment he ever had as a South African was seeing his government put Israel on trial for genocide.

He is of a Jewish background but said that state does not represent him and that he stands with the Palestinians in their resistance to this brutal state. I am ashamed that our Government is not standing shoulder to shoulder with South Africa in doing that. We could be proud if the Government had done so but it has failed to do so and has poured cold water on its case. Even now, the Government is procrastinating instead of doing the right thing and standing with an oppressed people who are being mowed down by a genocidal regime.

Deputy Mick Barry

The International Court of Justice, ICJ, should have ruled in favour of immediate ceasefire but despite its failure to do so, its ruling is a clear defeat for the Israeli regime. The court has found that it has a case to answer for genocide. The Irish Government must now get off the fence and join the South African action without further hesitation. Benjamin Netanyahu's decision to defy the ruling must now be a green light for the stepping up of mass protest worldwide against Israel's rulers and their backers.

Israel's number one backer, President Joe Biden, is due to host St. Patrick's Day celebrations in the White House in six weeks' time. I believe that all Irish politicians and political parties with an invite should refuse to attend. It is a basic act of solidarity. An injury to one is an injury to all. Earlier today, I challenged the Taoiseach on this issue in the Dáil. He should not hand a bowl of shamrock to Genocide Joe Biden in the White House on 17 March. He cannot do it in my name and I am confident in saying he cannot do it in the names of hundreds of thousands, at the very least, of other people in this country.

I must say to the movers of tonight's motion that what applies to the Government must also apply to them. Sinn Féin representatives should not go to the White House on 17 March for a celebration - and it is a celebration, by the way, and not a negotiation - with a President who has given such strong backing to a genocide. The argument that the "Palestinian leadership" are not opposed to the visit is not a strong argument when the reference being made is to Fatah representatives whose support is low in Gaza and in decline in the West Bank, and whose organisation is seen by a large number of Palestinians as both collaborationist and corrupt.

Mr. Omar Barghouti, the founder of the boycott, divestment and sanctions, BDS, movement, has said that no Irish politician should meet Mr. Biden or anyone from his Administration on St. Patrick's Day. More importantly, how does it look to a mother or father in Gaza, a person not in any leadership position who has lost children in this genocide, to see Irish politicians celebrating with the man who financed the bombs that fall from the sky above them? I strongly urge Sinn Féin to change its position and thereby increase pressure on the Government not to go. I strongly urge the Government to join the ICJ case. I also strongly urge people to join the protests and put increased pressure on the Government to join the case.

Deputy Seán Canney

I welcome the opportunity to speak on this subject. I have listened to the debate since it commenced and it is horrific that in 2024, we are talking about between 8,000 and 10,000 children being killed and over 20,000 people in total being killed in Palestine. What is it all about? We can talk about how it started with the attack on Israel. The consequence is that men, women and, above all, children have been killed. We do not know the extent to which many people have been maimed, physically and mentally, as a result of what has happened.

War is now about cutting off supplies so that people cannot have heat, water and sewerage. You starve them one way if you cannot kill them another way. When we see pictures on the television of children in hospitals that were attacked and bombed, we ask in whose name this is being done.

I listened to the Tánaiste speak earlier and I read his speech carefully. The ICJ is complex. It is about wording and finding fault. It has already stated there is a plausible risk of genocide. That is a step but while it has said that, what does it mean to the people in Gaza who are being attacked tonight and who will be attacked tomorrow and the next day?

I am, in a way, lost for words other than to say that at this stage, all right-minded people must come together to make every effort to sit down with Israel and the parties out there to create a humanitarian ceasefire initially and then to try to find a peace plan. We have got to stop the bombing, all the rhetoric about war and killing, and all that goes with it.

I thought it was terrible when the Russians attacked Ukraine. That is still going on but is not in the news as much because of the war in Israel. It is not a "war", in fact. The killing and murdering that is going on there has taken over the news feeds. It is actually something that has brought the world order, and what we are doing, into focus.

I do not believe that keeping away from Washington on St. Patrick's Day is going to do one iota. If we are there, we can try to convince the powers that be to take a different road. We have to keep talking to people across the world. We have had our own troubles in Ireland and found a peaceful solution to them, which to date has worked and has probably saved thousands of lives. With the international reputation we have, it is important that we use every ounce of our influence to try to bring this murderous and barbarous action to a close, once and for all. The scars will be there for years and it is something with which many people will have to live. It has gone way too far and we need to apply more and more international pressure, however we do it, to bring Israel to its senses and to stop the bloodshed that is happening.

We talk about how to find solutions. The first thing to do, as the Tánaiste mentioned, is to get a humanitarian ceasefire. The second thing we need to look at is a peace plan. The world, including Europe, America and everywhere else, needs to come together to deal with all of that and to ensure it is done as a matter of urgency.

Deputy Peadar Tóibín

At least 26,637 people have been killed by Israeli forces in Gaza so far. Some 65,387 people have been wounded since the Hamas attacks on 7 October 2023. The number of people dead is the equivalent of every man, woman and child in the city of Kilkenny being completely eliminated. Those are absolutely horrendous figures. Schools and hospitals have been vaporised. The rules of war have been dumped by the Israel Defense Forces. Some 215 Palestinians were killed in just the past 24 hours. We have seen manmade famine spread throughout the statelet. Words fail at the level of destruction that is happening at the moment. People are being purposely deprived of safety, medicine, healthcare and shelter. Israel, by its own admission, has sought to stop food and water reaching millions of people.

Today we hear it reported that half of the buildings in Gaza have been completely floored, which is incredible. A total of 1.9 million people have been displaced without a home, of which close to 1 million are women and girls. It is important to say that women and children have borne the brunt of Israeli violence over the past number of months, with over 16,000 women and children being killed. The Palestinian health ministry stated in the last day that occupation forces raided the Ibn Sina Hospital in the West Bank town of Jenin fatally shooting three young men while they were in hospital wards. I understand that the IDF forces were dressed as medics when they assassinated people in the hospital.

It is impossible under any examination of what is happening to see the outcome as accidental. All of the levels of human terror constitute acceptable collateral damage from the perspective of the Israeli Government. This leaves the Israeli Government directly responsible for all of this but what are we responsible for here in Ireland? The reason this is happening is that there is no international accountability. The US, the EU and Britain have written a blank cheque for Israel to do what it is doing. This is a deep stain on the US, the EU and Britain. They have facilitated in many ways the horrors of the war.

Now we see the war spreading to other international fronts. Ships are being attacked by the Houthis in the Red Sea, there are attacks on south Lebanon and we have seen US troops killed in Jordan. We have also seen attacks on Iranian personnel in Syria. This is an extremely volatile situation that could spread throughout the region.

We have seen the Irish Government outsource our foreign policy position to the EU. There is no legal reason for doing this. It was not necessary under the treaties or European law. We have outsourced it to the EU which has distorted our views. The EU has been giving views on the international stage that are the direct opposite of our views. That is wrong.

We have had words from this Government but little action. Some of the actions the Government could take would be to recognise the state of Palestine and support the case by South Africa. We have a special relationship with the US but I have no evidence of how we have leveraged that special relationship to persuade the Americans to put further pressure on the Israelis and to stop funding the war. The Minister of State might tell me how many times his party leader has met with the US ambassador to impart our shock and horror at the US position on this? How many times has the Taoiseach been in contact with senior US politicians to put pressure on them to stop this? How many times has the Government reached out in any way to the US Administration to communicate our shock and apply as much pressure as we can to get the Americans to becomes doves instead of hawks?

Deputy Michael Collins

Genocide is a uniquely horrific crime. The Holocaust saw the murder of 6 million Jews and was seen as so monstrous that the UN adopted the genocide convention promising never again to allow an attempt to wipe out a group of people or part of one simply because of their nationality, race, religion or ethnicity. That promise has been repeatedly broken, in Bosnia, Darfur and Rwanda to name but a few. Each new case brought before the International Court of Justice in The Hague ought to give the world a chance to make good on its word and help strength the taboo against genocide by clarifying the obligation of countries to prevent and punish it.

The ICJ is unlikely to offer a final ruling for years. Last week's ruling confirms only that South Africa has a "plausible" claim. This is a lower bar and such a provisional ruling would be widely seen as a finding that Israel was indeed guilty of genocide even if the court was to later rule that it was not. Israel would claim it is being treated unfairly and it would be right. Instead of restraining Israel in the war, such a provisional ruling might even embolden it to dismiss all international criticism. Israel would feel it was damned no matter what it does.

Those appalled by the suffering in Gaza may argue that genocide is the only charge that could be brought because the ICJ has no jurisdiction over other war crimes. However, the focus on an implausible crime diverts attention from the possibility that Israel is breaching the laws of war. These require Israel to distinguish between civilians and combatants and minimise civilian casualties by being proportionate in the use of force. The death toll of women and children raises grave doubts over whether Israel is meeting these obligations. It may also be failing to meet its duty under the Geneva Convention to provide medicine and food to civilians in the areas it occupies. As Gaza nears famine, its people do not need grand-standing, they need food. Israel's leaders need to realise that if they block supplies, they will be held accountable by the court of public opinion, which is the only court available.

I have been careful in my language on this issue for the past number of months. I have continuously called for a ceasefire from all sides. The reckless and immature politics inside this House, especially from Deputy Cairns and her party calling for the expulsion of the Israeli ambassador, is not the type of politics I would have anything to do with. This would have left the citizens of this country and the citizens of that country in grave danger and would land a neutral country like Ireland in the thick of this conflict.

Deputy Mattie McGrath

I am delighted that South Africa, a country with a very chequered history, brought forward this case. Words mean a lot but words can be semantics at times. The ICJ can only find a country guilty of genocide so it has said that there is a "plausible" claim of genocide in its interim judgement. I am surprised and disappointed that while we have close ties with the US, which I want to maintain, Ireland has not called in the US ambassador to persuade him to put more pressure on Israel to stop this horrible genocide and slaughter. There are war crimes by the dozen. To think that a population equivalent to the population of the city of Kilkenny, which is not far away from the Minister of State in Leinster, could be wiped out like this brings home the sheer horror of this, as does the number of children slaughtered and the attacks on hospitals. Humanitarian aid convoys are being attacked and if they are not attacked, they are being delayed, frustrated and over-searched with the unloading of all the vital aid. I heard that even tent poles could be used as a weapon. How far can this be stretched?

I also fundamentally condemn Hamas for its actions. I am shocked by the allegation, although it is only an allegation, that 12 employees of UNRWA were involved in plotting the attacks of 7 October. We need to be careful with our NGOs and the people we support, although these people are innocent until proven guilty. Three have gone missing and I think one is believed to be dead but if that is what they were doing in our name with taxpayers' money, it is horribly wrong.

This must be called out for what it is. It is a wiping out of a whole population and moving them to hell or to Connacht. They are moved from one area to the next safe area and then bombed out of that area too. We cannot stand idly by and watch this. I hope Sinn Féin is in the limo with invitations to do with the shamrock. I do not know whether it will pony up with this or speak on both sides of its mouth.

Deputy Danny Healy-Rae

I am glad to get the opportunity to talk about the horror in Gaza and Israel. It is terrible to see small children with their small lives snuffed out by bombs and bullets. We are a very small country. All we can do is ask that there be a ceasefire. I wonder where the UN peacekeeping force is. Why is it not intervening or at least attempting to intervene? It is fine to have courts. We do not know the answer the court will deliver because there have been atrocities on both sides but it is clear that the Israeli side has gone too far and it has to stop.

Where is the United Nations peacekeeping force? Why is it not getting involved? I am also disappointed with the United States. It should be putting on more pressure. It seems to be aligned closely with Israel, and has been for many years. I suppose going back to the Second World War, they have kind of been together. It is time it stopped. When a person loses their life that is the end of it. There is no coming back. There is no second chance. We see little children and their mothers with limbs, arms, eyes and everything gone, and lives are gone. It is terrible. It is horrible to look at the scenes in the news. We see them and watch them every night. It is terrible. It has to stop. We will support anything that stops the violence. I am asking and pleading that the Government does its best to call for peace and call in the United Nations peacekeeping force. I believe that is what it is for, to try to do something to stop this reckless loss of life.

Deputy Richard O'Donoghue

Ireland has always boxed well above its weight internationally. Ireland is a broker of peace. We see Israel and talk about legalities, and legal this and legal that. What it is doing is absolutely horrendous. There are young children, mothers, males and females, and bombings going on. We talk about how we will be able to do something soon, but by the time it is done they will have a race wiped out by killing men, women and children. The children and people who survive this are then in hospitals with no medicines because humanitarian aid is being blocked from going in. There are children and people being operated on with no anaesthetics and no pain relief, with limbs pulled off. Can you imagine it - no pain relief? We then see food and basic things from a humanitarian side that no-one should stop, and they are stopping those as well. I cannot understand why the world is sitting back and saying it will get them in front of the International Court of Justice and make them pay. How long will it take, pushing pieces of paper here, there and everywhere, and no accountability? This country has looked after people from a war in Ukraine. We have looked after them well and treated them as our own. This is the second war in how long. It is now normal for us to talk about wars in this House, and nothing is being done about these wars on a world stage. Ireland is a small island, and a caring island, and we are a broker of peace. If any message goes out to the world today it is that no-one should be able to take a life and if countries try to wipe out a race through war, they should be held accountable now and we should not wait and wait. The next thing is we will look at it in history books in years to come and say that we sat idly by and did nothing about it. I ask the Minister of State to send a message from Ireland that we are brokers of peace and we want this to stop now.

Deputy Joan Collins

I welcome last week's provisional ruling by the International Court of Justice ordering Israel to take all measures to prevent a genocide. It has been clear from the start of Israel's assault on Gaza that it has instead been taking all measures to ensure a genocide. We have failed in our moral and legal obligation to do anything to stop it. The news of the ICJ case has been dampened by the news that several countries, led by the US and UK, will be withdrawing funding from UNRWA. This is a clear attack on one of the most important aid agencies working with Palestinian refugees and those facing the Israeli onslaught in Gaza. This unilateral action was followed by an announcement from the European Commission that it too will be withdrawing aid from UNRWA. This is an absolute disgrace and is complicity in the crimes Israel is committing. It is clear retaliation to the ICJ's ruling last week. Israel has alleged that 12 workers in UNRWA were involved in the horrific attack on the Israeli people on 7 October. UNRWA is investigating and if anybody was involved it will deal with it.

I applaud the clear intent of the Irish Government and the Tánaiste to continue funding UNRWA. I also welcome the Government's call for a ceasefire now. In reaction to an order to take all actions possible to prevent a genocide, the US, UK and the European Commission took the action to see more Palestinians killed, more Palestinians die from hunger and thirst, and more Palestinians die from a lack of access to basic medicines. UNRWA is at the forefront of preventing this genocide. It has delivered to Gazan civilians 12,900 tonnes of flour, 4.7 million cans of protein-based food, food to 323,000 families outside the UNRWA shelters, 19,000,000 l of water, and medicines and medical supplies to a total value of more than $6.2 million. Across the Middle East, UNRWA is responsible for the education of more than 543,000 children. It provides $1.9 million in healthcare, more than 400,000 are supported by its social safety net programmes and it has 5.9 million refugees living under protection of the mandate. I know the Government will go to the US for St. Patrick's Day. I do not believe it should. However, if they go, I ask the Tánaiste and Taoiseach to argue with the US President to reinstate the funding to UNRWA and to stop funding military aid to Israel.

This attack on UNRWA is an attack on the right to live and survive of all Palestinians. It is another pillar in the ongoing genocide in Gaza and the ethnic cleansing of all Palestinians from Palestine. Since the beginning of its assault, Israel has systematically targeted both Gaza's ability to survive and its ability to show the world what is happening. More than 117 journalists and media workers have been killed. The Committee to Protect Journalists has called this the deadliest conflict for journalists since it began recording data, and it is launching investigations into the deliberate targeting of journalists, their homes, families and workplaces. More than 65% of Gaza's hospitals are no longer operational. Last week saw the Israeli assault on Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis, an area formally declared a safe zone. Today we have seen an assault on the Ibn Sina Hospital in Jenin in the occupied West Bank, by Israeli soldiers disguised as nurses and doctors. At the start of this conflict we argued about whether Israel should ever target a hospital. It is now attacking hospitals almost every day. These attacks on hospitals, journalists, and now aid agencies - and not just the targeting of civilians - constitute systematic destruction of Gaza's ability to report, record, or count the genocide being inflicted on it. If they target aid agencies on the ground, how will we know how many people are starving or suffering from thirst and disease? If they kill journalists, who will get the information on what Israel is doing? If there are no hospitals, doctors or nurses left, who will count the bodies?

We need action from the Government. It needs to intervene in this case, outline the clear crimes Israel has committed, support the ICJ and defend it and international law from any attack against it, take all necessary actions to ensure Israel complies with the provisional measures of this case, and support a state-led campaign of boycott, divestment and sanctions against Israel until we have a meaningful ceasefire.

Deputy Catherine Connolly

There are five pages of a speech here. Let me be positive first. I welcome that the Government will continue funding UNRWA. I am deeply concerned that other countries, including the US, have decided to suspend funding. Other than that, in this five-page speech, there is not a single reference to the findings of the ICJ. I find that truly incredible. It does not set out what the findings are and what we think of those findings - not a word. Instead it talks about how the ICJ is not a debating society, and how the Tánaiste will not be distracted by political posturing or one-upmanship.

The Tánaiste also said, "They may not be facts that fit neatly into a slogan to be shouted or a 90-second clip for TikTok". That is beneath the Tánaiste and is also an insult to Opposition Members who have repeatedly stood here, have done our best, have done our work along with our colleagues in the office to present what is happening in Israel, going through what has been said by the Government, the President in Israel, the Prime Minister and the various things.

I have read the judgment three times and to produce a speech like that is absolutely insulting. What does the judgment say? At the very least, the judgment sets out that the allegations of genocide are not without merit. The court found that South Africa's claim of a violation of rights under the genocide convention is plausible. To me that finding is shocking and extraordinary, and I agree with the commentators who have said that. No state, particularly Israel, should even get close to the point at which an allegation of genocide becomes plausible. It is a consequential step and the other striking aspect is the breadth of the court's majority on it. I can quote many commentators, many experts, but I choose to quote Professor Fionnuala Ní Aoláin:

This decision by the ICJ will be assessed by many on a particular “bottom line”, namely whether or not the word “ceasefire” has been used in the text of the judgment. That is the wrong test. Instead, the powerful and all-encompassing phase “take all measures within [its] power” leads to the conclusion that the State of Israel must in fact fundamentally reassess and revisit its conduct of hostilities in Gaza to ensure it is not found in breach of the Genocide Convention...

The Court’s emphasis on the totality of the provisions of the Genocide Convention, not just genocide but conspiracy to commit genocide; directing and public incitement to commit genocide; attempting to commit genocide; and complicity [and so on].

She refers to the overarching narrative from the court:

The Court clearly acknowledges the horror of October 7th, but the factual record marshalled to address the Parties is the ongoing horror of the situation in Gaza. The Court brings forcible displacement, death, the lack of access to food and water, and the situation of pregnant Palestinian women to the fore. It leans heavily into the statements of the U.N. Relief and Works Agency, the World Health Organization, and the words of the Under-Secretary General for Humanitarian Affairs and the Secretary General [and so on].

None of that is referred to whatsoever in this speech from the Tánaiste. What has happened since the court gave its judgment? Within 48 hours of the ruling, 373 more Palestinians were killed and 643 injured, bringing the total to 26,637 Palestinians with 60%, as I understand, being women or children. Surely that merited a comment on day 116 of Israel's war on Gaza.

UNRWA is the main organisation on the ground and Israel has suddenly come up with evidence as a result of which America and many other countries disgracefully and unacceptably have suspended their funding. UNRWA is the most important relief agency in Gaza. Let me say that Israel has been targeting UNRWA for many years, from Netanyahu down. A total of 152 UNRWA employees have been killed since the start of the current conflict. There has been an allegation by Israel in relation to 12 members. I do not know whether there is evidence for it, but there is a full investigation into that by the organisation. It is a tiny percentage of the overall 30,000 employed by UNRWA and suddenly the big powers - the big boys and the big women - can come together to suspend the vital funding for Gaza and Palestine and we do not see anything wrong with that.

Time prevents me from going any further but just let me quote Philippe Lazzarini the UNRWA Commissioner-General, "It is shocking to see a suspension of funds to the Agency in reaction to allegations against a small group of staff, especially given the immediate action that UNRWA took by terminating their contracts".

I am ashamed of what the Tánaiste has done here tonight. I am on record for praising him and the Taoiseach over their action in the past. Now they are simply playing games.

Deputy Violet-Anne Wynne

I commend this timely motion on this crucial issue. We are nearly four months into the genocide in Gaza - the first genocide to be live-streamed across the world. A record number of bombs have been dropped, killing over 25,000 people in Gaza in just three months, including over 10,000 children. Some 95% of the hungriest people in the world are now in Gaza, as the Israeli Government uses starvation as a weapon of war. A lack of clean water, sanitation, and the destruction of the healthcare system means diseases are spreading rapidly among nearly 2 million displaced Palestinians. Israel is deliberately inflicting all of this death, injury, illness and suffering on a captive civilian population in Gaza with the intention of wiping them out with more bombs and more bullets.

On Friday, a record number of people tuned in to watch the ICJ ruling, which has clearly stated that Israel must be investigated for genocide. The statements read out by the judge, from Israeli Government and military officials, made their intentions very clear. If Ireland and the international community remain silent, the war crimes we have seen up to now can be expected to continue.

The Government is obliged, under Article 1 of the convention, to take measures to prevent genocide. As it stands, it is failing in this obligation. Micheál Martin, the Tánaiste, has said that he would consider joining the case after Friday's ruling. What is there to consider? There is nothing left to hide behind. Inaction now will be forever remembered as cowardice in the face of appalling injustice. Has the Government considered what will happen if we do not join South Africa?

This genocide must be stopped and so we must support the motion for Ireland to join South Africa at the ICJ. Another day of fence-sitting in this House is the difference between life and death on the other side of the world. We should not be on the wrong side of history and the wrong side of humanity. Gaza needs action, not empty rhetoric and certainly not business as usual in organising trips to America in March especially not under the guise of organising peace.

Minister of State at the Department of Foreign Affairs (Deputy Sean Fleming)

The situation in the Gaza Strip is deeply shocking and I echo the comments of the Tánaiste and Deputies here in this House in decrying the appalling conditions in which the people of Gaza are now living and the terrible loss of life. The Government's priorities are clear and consistent. It is clear that a durable ceasefire is needed immediately and that there needs to be a drastic increase in the level of humanitarian aid reaching people in Gaza. The Government continues to call for the immediate and unconditional release of all hostages. We are continuing to work on these priorities in our bilateral contacts, as well as at European level and at the United Nations.

It must be noted that Ireland was one of the first countries in the EU to call for a humanitarian ceasefire. Our Attorney General will travel to The Hague next month to participate in the proceedings at the International Court of Justice on a case on the legality of Israel's policies and practices in the occupied Palestinian territories. Ireland has been at the forefront in pushing for EU sanctions against violent settlers displacing Palestinian communities in the West Bank. Micheál Martin was the first foreign minister in the world to express full confidence in the United Nations Relief and Works Agency Commissioner-General on Saturday when news broke of the possible participation of a small number of UNRWA employees in the heinous attacks on 7 October and others were deciding to halt funding to UNRWA's essential work on that particular day.

It has been mentioned that the opening speech on behalf of the Government did not get into the detail of the motion. I thank the party opposite for tabling the motion. People should understand that we are not opposing the vast bulk of the motion. In simple English, there is a motion before us from the Opposition party consisting of 56 lines of text. The amendment we have proposed comes to no more than two lines. The vast majority, 99%, of the motion, as presented, is being accepted by the Government. I will give an indication of the few minor amendments that we are making to the Opposition proposal. We want to insert the words-----

Deputy Matt Carthy

Changing "do" to "do not".

Deputy Sean Fleming

We want to insert "reiterates its unequivocal condemnation of the brutal terrorist attack by Hamas on Israel on 7th October, 2023". That needs to be said and I think most Irish people would agree with that. Then we ask for the deletion of the words " call on Israel to immediately implement fully" and we say on a textual basis "reiterate its call on Israel to immediately implement fully". It is a textual change. We propose to delete "file a declaration of intention to intervene in this case with the ICJ" from the Sinn Féin motion and put in the words "urgently consider filing a declaration of intervention in this case with the ICJ, based on a legal analysis of the Genocide Convention, the Court's provisional measures order and consultation with other Contracting Parties". Then we propose to delete the words "commence the process of preparing for participation in the [ICJ] case" and we want to include the words "commence the process of preparing for potential participation in the case".

Any reading of this would say 99% of the text tabled by the main Opposition party is accepted by the Government. Those are minor textual changes not amounting to even two lines out of the 56 put forward. In terms of balance and reasonableness, that is acceptance of and agreement with the vast majority of what has been said in the House. We are willing and happy to accept a minimum of 54 lines of the 56-line motion, with some textual changes the Government wants to make.

I ask the people opposite to take on board the fact the Government is, by and large, accepting the motion and to accept our amendments when it comes to the voting block tomorrow evening. If we want several votes on two or three lines of the 56-line motion, so be it, but there is a case for the House to unite behind the Government amendments, which are very close but not exactly as put forward by the main Opposition party.

Ireland has been consistent in our commitment to supporting the Palestinian people through development assistance. Last year, Ireland's total funding to the Palestinian people amounted to €36 million; of that, €20 million was provided in response to the conflict currently engulfing the Gaza Strip. Ireland has already provided more than 50 tonnes of humanitarian supplies, including tents. They were distributed in Gaza earlier this month through our rapid response initiative.

As Minister of State with responsibility for international development, I am well aware of the importance of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency, which is vital to ensuring access to basic services for millions of Palestinian refugees. In the context of the current crisis, the Government stepped up Ireland's contribution to the agency to €18 million. Ireland contributed €6 million in predictable core funding and announced an additional €2 million last June. Following a direct appeal from the agency's Commissioner-General in October, we announced an additional €10 million in funding, which would enable the agency to address the urgent humanitarian needs of people living in the Gaza Strip and West Bank, including East Jerusalem.

In addition and importantly, Ireland's programme includes €3 million in support of the Palestinian Authority for the Ministry of Education. I want to make it absolutely clear Ireland has no plans to suspend funding to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency and will continue to support it strongly throughout 2024. It is right that Commissioner-General Lazzarini has made the decision to immediately terminate the contracts of the agency staff suspected of participating in the reprehensible Hamas-led attacks on Israel on 7 October. As Members are aware, the agency has approximately 13,000 employees in the Gaza Strip. More than 150 have been killed since 7 October. UN workers providing humanitarian support to the population under attack put themselves at huge risk and it would be reckless of Ireland to suspend funding to them in view of the work they continue to do to help the people who need it most.

I note the statement made by the Secretary-General of the United Nations, which appealed to states not to suspend funding to the agency on the basis of the allegation. He stated:

tens of thousands of men and women who work for UNRWA, many in some of the most dangerous situations for humanitarian workers, should not be penalized. The dire needs of the desperate populations they serve must be met.

I think there is general agreement with the general approach of the Government on that issue from various commentators here tonight.

The Tánaiste welcomed the provisional measures announced by the International Court of Justice in the case taken by South Africa under the genocide convention. The provisional measures ordered by the court are binding and Israel must comply with them immediately. They include ordering Israel to ensure the Israeli military does not commit any genocidal actions and to prevent and punish cases of incitement to genocide. Importantly, the measures include that Israel must ensure basic services and humanitarian aid are provided to Gaza. Until now, humanitarian aid has not been reaching people in Gaza at anything close to the level needed.

We are committed to the essential work of the International Court of Justice. We made a significant contribution to facilitating the work of the court. Without those extra contributions from countries like Ireland, it would not be able to do the amount of work the world is calling for it to do. The Irish Government, on behalf of the Irish people, told the court it was doing important work - both the work on its agenda and the extra works - and provided further financial aid to allow it to continue its work. We support it fully in what it is doing but it cannot do it without funding from countries like Ireland and we are proud that is the case. We fully support the ongoing investigation of the prosecutor. The prosecutor asked states to provide the court with the tools it needs to fulfil its work and Ireland responded handsomely in order that it can continue to do its work.

In November, I attended a meeting of development ministers at which I reiterated Ireland's call for an immediate ceasefire. I urged EU partners to step up their funding contributions to organisations helping Palestinian people on the ground and stated our actions must have the ultimate aim of a just and lasting peace for both Israelis and Palestinians based on a two-state solution. We reiterate that here.

Ireland's immediate priority is to continue to work for an immediate ceasefire, the release of hostages and a dramatic increase in the volume of aid reaching the people of Gaza. We will continue to support international law and to work for accountability and justice.

An Ceann Comhairle

Deputy McDonald is sharing with Deputy Carthy.

Deputy Mary Lou McDonald

Humanity itself is on the line in Gaza. With every Palestinian killed in Israel's genocidal war, with every innocent Gaza child whose beautiful life is horrifically extinguished, with every family wiped out, home destroyed and hospital decimated, and with every refugee camp bombed, the humanity of the world slips further into the darkness. Ireland must now confront that darkness. Ireland must confront this genocide and seek justice for the Palestinian people. Ireland must join the case against Israel in the International Court of Justice under the genocide convention. South Africa has shown the world what it means to lead with moral conviction and integrity.

Last Friday's preliminary judgment by the ICJ is hugely significant. It established South Africa has a case and Israel a case to answer on the grounds of genocidal actions. The Tánaiste had stated the Government would consider intervention in South Africa's case once the court had made its preliminary orders. There now remains no excuse for the Government not to act or join South Africa in challenging Israel's impunity.

It is not enough for the Minister of State to rehash the same old lines or point to what he claims are minor textual changes. The kind of textual change the Government wants is the distinction between clarity, purpose and action on one hand, and dithering, delay and shameful inaction on the other. The Government's approach to this matter is massively disappointing and does not tally with the Irish instinct to do what is just and right for a brutalised people.

Today in the Dáil, the Taoiseach said the Irish Government is undertaking rigorous legal analysis regarding its options, as if those facing genocide in Gaza have all the time in the world. They do not. Some 26,000 Palestinians have already been killed, mostly women and children, and 1.9 million Gazans have been displaced. They have very little water or food and nowhere to go. In Gaza, nowhere is safe. This blockaded, impoverished refugee population now faces famine and disease. When Israel does not end Palestinian lives by gunfire or air strike, it will attempt to end them by starvation and disease. Gaza's health infrastructure has been obliterated. Medical supplies are running out. Medical procedures are carried out without anaesthetic or antibiotics. These are the very markers of genocide.

I want to quote Dr. Deborah Harrington, an obstetrician who worked at Shuhada al-Aqsa Hospital. I think her words capture the unfathomable horror inflicted on the people of Gaza:

A child came in alive, literally burnt to the bone ... their face was just charcoal, and they were alive and talking. And we had no morphine.

Dr. Harrington also said she saw children with "open fractures, partial amputations, open chest wounds, horrendous lacerations ... and burns, and that was every day." That these brutalised children could be considered the lucky ones speaks to the utter depravity of Israel’s merciless onslaught. The unlucky children are no longer here. Their tomorrows have been wiped out in the whirlwind of hatred that Netanyahu and his military machine have rained down on the Palestinians over the last 115 days. This is not only a genocidal war; it is a genocidal war on children.

On television and social media, the world and its leaders have watched Gaza become a graveyard for children and, shamefully, nothing has been done to put a stop to it. While the ICJ did not use the word "ceasefire", the only way to operationalise its ruling is through an immediate, full and permanent ceasefire. Israel’s slaughter must be stopped. By intervening in the South African case in The Hague, Ireland would become the first European nation to seek justice for the people of Gaza through the international justice system. We all know the famous saying, "The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good people to do nothing." Let us be under no illusions that what Israel is inflicting on the people of Gaza is evil. Ireland is a nation of good people - a people with our own story about oppression, colonisation, dispossession and famine, and we must now do something. That something, in this time and in this place, must be to join with South Africa in its case to hold Israel accountable for its crimes against the Palestinian people. Therefore, the Government must show courage. It must stand for humanity. The time for dithering, fence-sitting and hedging your bets is over. It is now time to act on our behalf, and the Government must act.

Deputy Matt Carthy

If this were not so serious, the Minister of State's play on words would be entirely laughable. To suggest that the Government's amendment is simply some small linguistic textual changes to our motion is, as I said, laughable, but also inexcusable. The Sinn Féin motion calls very clearly on the Government to make a declaration of intent that it will join the South African case against Israel under the genocide convention. The Government amendment includes the word "consider" before that demand. It is this equivalent of changing "do" to "do not". It completely undoes the purpose of this motion and, therefore, I am urging this House to reject the Government amendment. I am urging all those members of the Government who have joined with us in condemning the brutal Israeli attacks on innocent Palestinian men, women and children to vote according to their beliefs when we come before this House tomorrow night.

We should just think about what happened last Friday. To call it a game-changer does not even begin to outline the magnitude of what the International Court of Justice determined because it had options before it. It could have dismissed the South African charges, as Israel had wished, but instead, the members of the court - the highest court in the world, charged with upholding international humanitarian law and overseeing the genocide convention - said that Israel has a plausible case to answer. In other words, it is plausible that Israel is committing genocide. The bar of being plausible is high. How ashamed would any citizen of any country be that their Government was accused of plausibly committing genocide? We have a view that this goes beyond a plausible case, but, at the end of the day, the ICJ will make a final declaration.

A state that is currently before the International Court of Justice, which has decided it has a plausible case to answer for genocide, is also a state that enjoys the most beneficial trading, diplomatic and economic relationship with the most powerful entities in the world, including the United States and, to our shame, the European Union. Therefore, we have to ask how we can bring a state from plausibly committing genocide to stopping its acts of terror, including the bombardment of hospitals, schools, refugee camps and an entire civilian population, resulting in the displacement of 2 million people. How can we allow the most basic of humanitarian assistance to reach a civilian population that is undergoing a humanitarian catastrophe the likes of which we have hardly seen in our lifetimes? How do we stop it? We do something to force it to stop. We have been crying out, recognising that the words of Irish Government Ministers are much stronger than many other Ministers across the across the world but also recognising that words will not be enough in this instance. Words must be matched by actions. Our appeal to all the Members of this House is to take this action, which simply involves us following the very brave leadership of South Africa by making and joining the case against Israel. I urge Members of this House to reject the Government amendment and support the Sinn Féin motion.

Dáil Éireann díospóireacht - Tuesday, 30 Jan 2024

International Court of Justice and Genocide in Gaza: Motion [Private Members]

Dáil Éireann díospóireacht -
Tuesday, 30 Jan 2024