Waterford activists meet UN Special Rapporteur on the occupied Palestinian territories

Waterford activists representing Gaeil ar son Gaza and Waterford for Palestine travelled to Dublin this week to hear UN Special Rapporteur on the occupied Palestinian territories Francesca Albanese speak on the situation in Palestine.

Ms Albanese, who is an international law and human rights expert, said in her speech at the Carmelite Community Centre at Aungier Street, Dublin, on Wednesday, that activism is essential for people to see what is happening in Palestine.

She went on to say that if a Criminal Tribunal were established today for Palestine alone, it would take 100 years to hear all the evidence against Israel.

"The people of Palestine are facing an existential threat. They are being slaughtered by Israel in plain sight, and if it weren't for the activism of ordinary people like yourselves, they wouldn't even be seen.

"Despite what some politicians may tell you, this is not a complicated situation. 

"It is not just Gaza – the entire Palestinian people are being genocided by Israel. If someone tells you 'it's complicated', that is just an excuse for their own inaction and for ignoring the situation," said Ms Albanese.

The meeting was held by Sadaka, the umbrella group for the many Irish organisations, including Amnesty International, Christian Aid Ireland, Oxfam, SIPTU, Comhlámh, ICTU and many more who aim to make the Irish government accountable for their relationship with the state of Israel and apply economic sanctions immediately.

It was jointly chaired by Senator Frances Black, who introduced the Occupied Territories Bill in 2018, and former Director of Trócaire and now Chairperson of the Sadaka group, Éamonn Meehan.

Among contributors were student representatives from Irish Jews for Palestine who said that this Genocide is being carried out in their name.

The students later joined an emergency protest for Palestine outside the Dáil, which then proceeded down Grafton Street, bringing traffic to a standstill for over an hour.

Gaeil ar Son Gaza say they are demanding the removal of the IHRA definition of anti-semitism from the current programme for government.

"This definition is insidious, and accepting it will shut down all possibilities for debate or criticism of what Israel is doing to the Palestinian people."

They say they would demand the government to ban the use of Shannon Airport for US warplanes to refuel– especially for the US and Germany.

"As citizens who live in a democracy, we are entitled to hold our politicians accountable for their response (or non-response) to Israel's genocide in Palestine, which contravenes international law," said the group.

The group also want universities to end their relationship with Israel.

The current phase of the conflict in Palestine began on October 7, when Hamas launched an attack on Israel, killing approximately 1,200 people and taking 251 hostages.

Since then, Israel has killed more than 60,000 people and injured more than 17,492, with more than 14,000 missing and presumed dead, according to Aljazeera.

As of the start of February, Israel has reportedly killed 905 people, including 181 children, in the Occupied West Bank.