Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 25 January 2018
31. Deputy Catherine Connolly asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade the contact which has been made with the UN regarding the attacks on 9 January 2018 by Israeli missiles on Syrian army positions near Damascus (details supplied); if he has requested the UN Security Council to investigate these breaches of international peace; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [3365/18]
Amharc ar fhreagraI am aware of the attack on an arms depot outside Damascus on 9 January and I understand that the Syrian Foreign Ministry has written to the UN Security Council and UN Secretary-General regarding this incident. The conflict in Syria, which is now approaching its eighth year, has been extremely destabilising for the wider region. I call on all parties to exercise restraint in order to avoid any further destabilisation of the region.I had the opportunity to discuss the conflict and its impact during my recent visit to the Middle East, including with the Secretary General of the League of Arab States and the Egyptian Foreign Minister. Clearly, a comprehensive, inclusive political solution to the conflict is urgently needed, both to end the suffering of the Syrian people and to prevent any further turmoil in the region. The UN is leading political negotiations to end the conflict based on the 2012 Geneva Communique and UN Security Council resolution 2254, which calls for an end to violence; release of political prisoners; formation of a transitional governing body with executive powers and a constitutional reform process. Ireland fully supports this process and the work of UN Special Envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura. The EU provides direct assistance to the UN-led Geneva peace talks and has launched, in coordination with the UN, an initiative to develop political dialogue with key actors from the region to identify common ground.
Ireland and the EU also provide support, including financial support, to a broad range of mechanisms to ensure legal accountability for all war crimes and crimes against humanity committed in Syria. Attacks on civilians, including attacks on medical facilities and civilian infrastructure, attacks resulting in the deaths of children and the use of chemical weapons are particularly horrifying features of this tragic conflict.
Ireland has consistently called for the situation in Syria to be referred to the ICC, and in 2016, Ireland and a group of like-minded countries successfully pushed for a UN General Assembly resolution establishing an International Impartial and Independent Mechanism to assist in the investigation and prosecution of persons responsible for the most serious crimes under international law committed in Syria. Ireland made a contribution of €100,000 to support the establishment of this mechanism last year.
I participated in the discussion at the December EU Foreign Affairs Council on the discussion of the regional situation in the Middle East, including of course the urgent need for progress towards peace in Syria. I joined colleagues in stressing the primacy of the UN-led Geneva process and the need for an inclusive political transition in Syria.
