Irish Support for the Palestinian People Continues Around the World
Based Irish leaders still say no to Zionist imperialism.
Michelle O'Neill, the newly elected First Minister of Northern Ireland, expressed in a recent interview the idea of Hamas eventually becoming a “partner for peace” in the Middle East. Such a statement is in line with many leading Irish intellectual and political figures such as European Parliament member Clair Daly and civil rights leader and former Irish MP Bernadette McAliskey. It is also in line with statements and documents produced by Hamas themselves, which rarely ever see the light in Western media.
Ireland and Palestine have a strong history of diplomatic relations. Ireland was the first state in the European Union (EU) to advocate for Palestinian statehood. In 2000, Ireland opened a representative office in Ramallah, while Palestine established a representative office in Dublin. Following the escalation of violence that began last autumn, Irish charities and organizations have made significant efforts to supply the Palestinian people with much needed medical supplies and food, as well as financial aid. Today, this solidarity continues in the form of a boycott planned for the upcoming St. Patrick’s Day festivities at the White House.
The boycott, hopefully, will bring attention to the fact that the US has been the largest contributor to the Israeli military. Receiving over 300 billion dollars since 1951, Israel is by far the largest military beneficiary of the US since the Second World War. In addition, the U.S. has been a major supporter of Israel’s illegal settlement enterprise, which has grown by over 40% since 2016.
The boycott is also intended to draw attention to the fact that the US has consistently vetoed resolutions at the United Nations Security Council which would hold Israel accountable for its violations of international law, including the Fourth Geneva Convention. Israel has never been held accountable for its violations of international law. The legacy of events such as the Israeli attack on the USS Liberty and the Six-Day war have set the standard of injustice for the international community; the same standard that allowed the Obama-imposed Kiev regime in Ukraine to indiscriminately murder civilians in Donbass since the illegal coup in 2014.
Western nations by-and-large offer Israel financial and military support in lockstep synchronicity, placing Ireland in a unique position as an ally of the Palestinian people in the West. Why? The answer to this question lies, at least in part, in the historical oppression of the Irish people by the British empire—the same empire that initiated Israel’s illegal occupation of Palestine by way fo the Balfour Declaration of 1917. The Irish have seen these games before and, having had to defend themselves against the same imperialist force, have a unique perspective allowing them to more easily empathize with the civilian victims of Israel’s genocide in Gaza.
The Irish will continue to stand on the right side of history as the nation’s leaders speak out in defiance of the inaction and injustice of the international community, placing the protection of civilians and the rule of law before mainstream Western interests. If you are interested in helping the Irish support the people of Palestine, please consider checking out some of the organizations leading the charge such as Trócaire and Caritas, which work to end human suffering not just in the Middle East, but all over the world.
-the Shultz Report by M. Shultz