OPINION: Ireland’s shameful complicity in mass murder

For a country that has long prided itself on a history of anti-colonial struggle, human rights advocacy, and support for oppressed peoples worldwide, Ireland is now in real danger of trading off a past reputation for standing on the right side of history that no longer exists.
Fondly we recall how Irish voices rang out in opposition to Apartheid in South Africa (led by a bunch of incredible working-class people, mostly women), and how our own history of bloody colonialisation has made us particularly sensitive and sympathetic to the plight of nations struggling under foreign dominion. But when it comes to Palestine, we remain shamefully complicit in the oppression of the Palestinian people, who are being obliterated in a genocide perpetrated by Israel. There can be no denial of this last statement; we have watched it daily, in its most graphic, uncensored form in the palms of our hands, for over 12 months now.
The Irish Government, for the past year, can no longer deny its complicity in this mass murder. Despite much handwringing and many watery statements of protest, Ireland continues to delay the enactment of the Occupied Territories Bill and turn a blind eye to the constant use of Irish airspace to transport munitions bound for Israel.
Our Taoiseach, Simon Harris, having had a golden opportunity to challenge US President Joe Biden (whose face on a mural shamefully continues to adorn Ballina’s Market Square) on the issue of the US supplying arms to Israel. Instead, he cowered behind diplomacy and the fear of upsetting our US tech overlords and bottled it most spectacularly, leaving the Irish people in little doubt as to the solidity of his spine.
Ireland’s neutrality is a cornerstone of our foreign policy, or at least it is meant to be. Yet, online news outlet The Ditch has recently highlighted multiple instances of weapons destined for the Israeli military being transported through Irish sovereign airspace. It is illegal to carry war munitions through Irish territory without permission from the Department of Transport.
Firstly, Eamon Ryan denied it was happening, despite his department never having carried out any searches. Then he said it couldn’t be allowed. Then he said it would have to be investigated. Now, he is awaiting the results of an investigation.
It is no secret that US military planes refuel at Shannon Airport, the same planes that fuel the war machine that is devastating Gaza and the West Bank. The weapons transported through our airspace are placing the safety of our own defence forces at risk. How can we reconcile our neutral stance with such complicity? We simply cannot.

Economic sanctions
And for all this government’s bluster, we have yet to impose a single economic sanction on Israel. We have the EU to hide behind for that, despite the International Court of Justice identifying the occupation in Palestine as illegal.
The Occupied Territories Bill, introduced by Senator Frances Black in 2018, was a rare and bold move by an Irish politician to address the grave injustices in Palestine. It seeks to ban the importation of goods produced in illegal Israeli settlements in the occupied Palestinian territories. It passed several stages in the Oireachtas with widespread public support, a testament to the Irish people’s solidarity with the Palestinian cause, which has been demonstrated time and time again on our streets.
Our government continues, however, to wilfully stall the progress of the bill, citing concerns about EU trade rules and potential diplomatic fallout. This week, with an election on the horizon, they have made feeble moves to advance it, but say it requires significant redrafting. It is highly unlikely to progress much further before the Taoiseach goes to the Áras.
By delaying the enactment of this bill, the Irish government is not just turning a blind eye to Israel’s brutal violations of international law; it is tacitly endorsing them. Every day that passes without this legislation is another day of complicity in the subjugation of the Palestinian people.
It is also notable that despite several county councils passing motions calling on the Government to enact this bill, this section of a motion about Palestine mysteriously disappeared from the agenda at last week’s monthly meeting of Mayo County Council. It seems courage is lacking locally too.
We should ask ourselves: where is the bravery and conviction that once defined Irish foreign policy? Where are the leaders who were willing to speak truth to power, even when it meant defying powerful allies? Our government’s timid response, failure to act and undisputed complicity in the genocide in Palestine is a stain on our national conscience, an abandonment of our values. It proves that capitalism once again takes precedence over human life. The arms trade is highly lucrative.
To call out Israel’s murderous rampage and the curse of Zionism is not anti-Semitic. We can say that the abused has become the abuser, but this does a huge injustice to the Jewish community, whose voices are growing louder and louder in the global clamour to get Netanyahu to call off his dogs. This is not being done in their name.
Maybe a general election will see things change in Ireland; maybe some moral courage might emerge among some of the newer faces on the doorsteps. In the meantime, to our shame, Ireland remains a bystander, rooted firmly on the wrong side of history.