Alan Dillon: Ireland urges EU action over Israel's breaches
Alan Dillon addresses the Dáil debate on the situation in Palestine, outlining Ireland's legal approach and urging stronger EU measures in response to persistent Israeli breaches of human rights and international law. He sets out the government's support for international courts, welcomes recent EU momentum on sanctions, and rejects a Private Members' Bill that would amount to a full economic boycott of Israel.
Overview: In this speech to the Dáil, Alan Dillon thanks deputies for their contributions and stresses the depth of feeling across the House about the suffering in Gaza. He emphasises that respect for international law is central to Ireland's foreign policy and that the government is pursuing action through international courts and UN channels.
Legal action and international courts: Dillon recalls Ireland's submissions to the International Court of Justice and the UN General Assembly resolution that followed. He welcomes the ICJ advisory opinion and underlines Ireland's continued calls for Israel to remove restrictions on aid access and facilitate essential supplies into Gaza.
EU response and sanctions: The minister highlights recent coordinated pressure at EU level and welcomes political agreement at the Foreign Affairs Council to proceed with sanctions against violent settlers and enabling organisations. He says Ireland will press the EU to prohibit trade with Israeli settlements and to consider suspension of aspects of EU-Israel agreements.
Domestic legislation and limits: Dillon explains the government will pursue actions grounded in law and implementable in practice. While critical of the current Israeli government's policies, he makes clear that the government does not support a policy of boycotting Israel; he warns that the Private Members' Bill would amount to a full economic boycott of Israel and therefore cannot be supported.
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Firstly, I want to thank all the deputies for their very sincere and heartfelt contributions to the debate on this really important and extremely complex issue. The strength of opinion and depth of feeling held across the House on the situation in Palestine is very clear, and the government fully acknowledges the desire to take action in response to persistent Israeli breaches of human rights and international law. The government also understands the urge to do more, to move the dial to bring an end to the terrible suffering of the people of Palestine, particularly those in Gaza. Comhairleach, respect for international law is at the core of Ireland's foreign policy. Ireland has been consistently vocal in calling for Israel to comply with its obligations under international law, and Ireland continues to pursue actions through the international courts to address breaches of international law and international human law in Palestine. We condemn Israel's illegal occupation of the occupied Palestinian territories, and as deputies are aware, in July 2024 the International Court of Justice delivered an advisory opinion on the legal consequences arising from the policies and practices of Israel in the occupied Palestinian territory, including East Jerusalem, a case in which Ireland made written and oral submissions. Ireland subsequently co-sponsored a resolution adopted by the UN General Assembly in September 2024, which seeks to implement the Court's advisory opinion. We have also welcomed the ICJ advisory opinion in October 2025, which automatically affirms Israelis' obligation under international law in relation to the presence and activities of the UN under international organizations and third states in and in relation to occupied Palestinian territories. We continue to urge Israel to immediately remove its restrictions on aid access and facilitate essential supplies and services into and throughout Gaza. We are seeing long overdue momentum at a European level following coordinated pressure by Ireland and other like-minded states. Ireland strongly welcomes political agreement at the Foreign Affairs Council meeting last Monday to proceed with sanctions against violent settlers in the West Bank and organizations that enable them. This is a crucial step in response to the accelerating expansion of settlement activities and settler violence in the West Bank in an atmosphere of impurity. There is clear growing support for additional measures at an EU level in response to the Israelis' persistent breaches of international law. Ireland has called on the EU to suspend the EU-Israel associated agreements or, at the very least, to suspend the trade element of the agreement as previously proposed by the Commission President in September 2025. The Government will continue to press for appropriate EU-level action in response to the egregious Israeli breaches of human rights and domestic principles. The viability of the two-state solution and the credibility of the EU is at stake if we do not act. At the Foreign Affairs Council in Brussels on Monday, Minister McEntee called on the Commission to bring forward proposals that prohibit trade with Israeli settlements, with a view to a decision at the next meeting of the Council in June. At EU level, ban on trade with settlements would have had significant impact, in addition to bringing necessary to ensure the EU's complement with its obligations under international law, as clarified by the advisory opinion of the ICJ. The Government will continue to press for this step, working with like-minded partners in the EU. In parallel, the Government remains committed to progressing the Israeli settlements in the Occupied Palestinian Territories Bill of 2025, and Minister McEntee has set out the approach that the Government is taking in this regard. We believe that the position that we take and the actions of which we advocate must be grounded in law and capable of being effectively implemented. Regrettably, for the reasons that we have set out by Minister McEntee, this has not been the case for this Private Members' Bill. While we have fundamental policy differences with the present Government of Israel and with the actions that it is taking, we must be very clear that Ireland does not have or support a policy of boycotting Israel or any sovereign state in which we have diplomatic reasons. This Private Members' Bill would amount to a full economic boycott of Israel. This Private Members' Bill would be a full economic boycott of Israel. It would be a full economic boycott of Israel.
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