Sir, – Taoiseach Simon Harris at the weekend robustly condemned the repeated Israeli attacks on schools in Gaza – now used mainly as shelters by displaced Palestinian families – and the consequent “awful and wholesale loss of civilian life” (“Harris calls for review of EU-Israel agreement as deaths in Gaza near 40,000 milestone”, News, August 11th).
In a muscular and apposite statement, following the horrific massacre on Saturday of at least 80 people at a school in Gaza City, the Taoiseach quite rightly called for an immediate ceasefire and spoke of the “many undoubted war crimes” committed by Israel in the Gaza Strip over the past 10 months, declaring that those responsible “must be held to account”. It was an exceptionally powerful condemnation of Israel’s barbaric war on the civilians of Gaza and an assertion of support for international humanitarian law.
Moreover, particularly welcome were the Taoiseach’s implicit admission that economic sanctions are necessary and his reiteration of the call by Ireland and Spain for an urgent review of the EU-Israel Association Agreement, a legal contract that confers advantages on Israel in its commercial relationship with the European Union. The EU remains Israel’s most significant trade partner, with, for example, some 25.6 per cent of Israel’s exports going to the EU in 2022. The suspension of this agreement is something that critics of Israel’s brutal occupation and illegal settlement policies have been demanding for many years.
However, it is important, too, that the Government here should not focus exclusively on the EU-Israel Association Agreement. Mr Harris has done the right thing in repeating the request for a review, but this was first put to the EU as an urgent matter in February (“Ireland and Spain seek urgent review of Israel trade over EU deal’s human rights obligations”, News, February 14th). Since then, there has been no movement on the issue and the request by Ireland and Spain has been effectively ignored. This is unsurprising as key EU states such as Germany remain strong supporters of Israel; indeed, Germany has traditionally been one of Israel’s biggest suppliers of weapons, providing the latter, for instance, with up to 30 per cent of its arms between 2019 and 2023.
Ten potential breakout stars to watch in the Premier League this season
Grálinn review: This gloriously carefree Co Wexford restaurant will nourish your soul
‘We need the Irish because God gave us the gift of the gab’: Irish-Americans rally behind Kamala Harris
Will 200-year-old maps help inform decisions on crucial habitat restoration and future land use?
The Government here must be aware that a formal review of the EU-Israel trade agreement is unlikely to happen soon and time is not something that Palestinian civilians have on their side. With a catastrophe evident in Gaza, it would be entirely moral and reasonable for Ireland to take unilateral action. In truth, strong words alone were never sufficient. The Government should back the forceful statement by Simon Harris by enacting the Occupied Territories Bill and the Illegal Israeli Settlements Divestment Bill. The purpose of both these Bills aligns perfectly with the sentiments expressed by the Taoiseach at the weekend and it would encourage other concerned states to take similar measures. – Yours, etc,
FINTAN LANE,
Lucan,
Co Dublin.