THE ISRAELI embassy in Ireland has accused an Oireachtas delegation which visited Israel and Palestine of failing to show a comprehensive understanding of the situation there.
Members of the Joint Committees on Foreign Affairs and European Affairs issued a statement after a visit to Gaza, Israel and the Palestinian Authority last month which was critical of Israel’s policy.
The embassy welcomed the genuine interest of TDs in the Middle East and their concern about the humanitarian situation in Gaza expressed after their visit two weeks ago.
“However, we feel that the conclusions of the delegation, as outlined in their joint statement, falls short of showing a comprehensive understanding of the complex situation existing in the Middle East,” said the embassy in a statement.
“Although we welcome the fact that the delegation recognises the suffering Hamas has inflicted on the people of southern Israel and their condemnation of Hamas’ indiscriminate rocket attacks, the delegation marginalises the fact that for the past eight years, almost one million people in southern Israel were bombarded by over 12,000 rockets and mortars fired by Hamas.
‘‘They also omit to mention the 1,100 Israeli citizens who have been killed by terror attacks, such as suicide bombings, since 2000,’’ the embassy said. The embassy rejected the comparison, made by the Oireachtas delegation, to the conflict in Northern Ireland and insisted that Hamas was not the same as the IRA.
“If Hamas were to accept the principles set out by the international community, that is recognising Israel’s right to exist, renouncing terrorism, accepting the prior agreement signed between Israel and the Palestinian Authority, and, like the IRA, transform itself into a partner for dialogue, it could join the peace process and put an end to the suffering of the Palestinian people,” the embassy said.
