Middle East

Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 20 February 2024

Tuesday, 20 February 2024

Ceisteanna (119)

Catherine Connolly

Ceist:

119. Deputy Catherine Connolly asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs given his statement of 26 January 2024 when he recalled the commitment by Dáil Éireann to "strongly consider intervention" in the South Africa case at the ICJ, and stated that he had asked his officials to prepare legal advice for his consideration on an "urgent basis"; if he will brief Dáil Éireann on the detailed particulars of the legal advice he has sought; if he will provide that legal advice to Dáil Éireann; if he will outline a deadline for the State's decision regarding an intervention in the ICJ case, in the context of the slaughter of 30,000 Palestinians by Israel, the almost total destruction of civilian infrastructure and, now, the spread of famine and disease among a weak and vulnerable population; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [7448/24]

Freagraí scríofa

Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs

The Government is continuing its analysis of the legal and policy aspects of South Africa’s case under the Genocide Convention and is in ongoing contact with South Africa and other like-minded partners. We will take a decision on intervention once we have completed this comprehensive legal and policy analysis.

It is likely that we will not make a final decision on the matter until after South Africa files its written memorial. The reason we wait until the applicant, in this case South Africa, files its memorial, is so that we have a full understanding of the case the applicant is making.

This is exactly what we did in the Ukraine v Russia case under the Genocide Convention, where we sought to intervene only after Ukraine had filed its memorial.

In the meantime, there are several other cases and investigations ongoing in respect of the situation in the occupied Palestinian territory. For instance, this week the Attorney General will appear before the ICJ in The Hague to set out Ireland’s legal analysis of the occupation and of issues related to Israeli policies and practices in the occupied Palestinian territory.

More broadly, it is clear that the most effective way to ease the enormous human suffering faced by the Palestinian people is to secure an immediate and lasting ceasefire, and to ensure sustained and effective humanitarian access in Gaza. This is a message I have delivered consistently to partners in Europe, in the US and in the Middle East, including in my meetings at the Munich Security Conference last weekend and the EU Foreign Affairs Council on Monday. In addition, it is key that UNRWA is able to continue its lifesaving work in Gaza, which is why we have committed a contribution of €20 million to help ease its current funding crisis.