Richard Boyd Barrett: Condemns US-Israel Attacks, Blasts Government
Richard Boyd Barrett condemned the United States and Israeli attack on Iran and accused the Irish government of failing to condemn the assault. He called the government’s silence “an absolute disgrace” and alleged the strikes were part of an effort to extend the devastation seen in Gaza to Iran.
Allegations about the attacks and casualties
He said the U.S.-Israeli attack killed schoolchildren and destroyed a 12,000-seater football stadium in Tehran, and accused the United States and Israel of pursuing a strategy of genocidal expansion that replicated the destruction he attributed to Gaza.
Criticism of the Irish government and facilitation
He said the Irish government’s refusal to condemn the attacks was disgraceful and accused it of complicity for allowing U.S. military use of Shannon Airport while the strikes were carried out. He described planned diplomatic courtesies to visiting leaders as a betrayal of Ireland’s tradition of neutrality and anti-imperialism.
Historical parallels and broader consequences
He drew parallels with the 2003 U.S.-led war on Iraq, saying that past facilitation of U.S. military action led to large-scale death, displacement and regional destabilisation. He warned that unchecked military action would further destabilise the Middle East and impose global economic and security costs.
Domestic impact and security concerns
He said 20,000 Irish people in the Middle East were affected by the fallout and warned that the economic and security consequences were already being felt at home. He also criticised the perceived role of U.S. and Israeli leadership in pursuing nuclear and imperial ambitions, and challenged a colleague, Deputy Murphy, on who posed the greater nuclear danger.
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The failure of the government and the two ministers who spoke for the government today to condemn the attack by Israel and the United States on Iran is an absolute disgrace. An absolute disgrace. I mean, the world is now paying a price for the bloodlust of the psychopaths that run Israel and the psychopaths that are the Trump administration attacking Iran and setting the entire region on fire and now precipitating economic consequences for literally everybody in the world. And the Irish government cannot bring themselves to condemn that. They can't bring themselves to condemn the slaughter of 160 innocent schoolgirls massacred by the Americans and the Israelis. In the last two hours, a 12,000-seater football stadium in Tehran was destroyed by the U.S.-Israeli attack. A football stadium, which also has swimming pools, cycling facilities and dormitories leveled. What has that got to do with bringing anything other than death and destruction and horror to the world? Well, you see, I tell you, there's a lot of interesting commentary about the Americans and the Israelis. They don't know what they're doing. They don't know what the end game is. Totally wrong. Totally wrong. They know exactly what the end game is. They want to do to Iran what they did to Gaza. They want to extend the genocide that we witnessed for the last two and a half years in Gaza into Iran. They want to destroy it. That's what it means when they just attack schools and murder schoolchildren and they attack football stadiums, just like they destroyed all the hospitals, all the schools, all the universities, all the water infrastructure and killed 75,000 people at least in the genocide in Gaza. They now think we can do it again in Iran because we got away with it against the people of Gaza. We continue to get away with it by ethnically cleansing the West Bank. We're going to get away with it in Iran. And we're going to dominate and control the entire region. And Donald Trump doesn't know what he's doing. He knows exactly what he's doing. He's going to make America praise again. This is about the U.S. Empire. This is about them doing what they did in the past in El Salvador, in Chile, in Nicaragua, in Cuba, what they did in Iraq and Afghanistan and what they have done with their cat's paw. America, the West's cat's paw, called the Israeli state, the genocidal regime that has been ethnically cleansing the Palestinian people since 1948 and has now reached the level of committing a genocide. And now they want to extend the fire, the death and destruction all over the Middle East in a way that is now threatening the entire world. And we said it. We said, if you don't sanction this regime, we will all pay a price. And now literally every single person in this country is paying a price for the bloodlust of Trump and Netanyahu. Everybody. In their actual pocket. 20,000 Irish people in the Middle East are paying the price with their security, having to shelter and flee from the fallout of the death and destruction that Israel and the Trump administration are inflicting. And the Irish government can't condemn it, but actually worse are complicit with it by allowing the U.S. military through Shannon Airport while they prosecute this slaughter. And while they threaten to set the entire Middle East on fire. And you are facilitating them as we speak. Just as was done by previous Irish governments when you facilitated the U.S.-led war on Iraq in 2003, also based on a pack of lies about weapons of mass destruction, supposedly about taking out a dictator in reality, which led directly and indirectly to a million people dying and four million people at the time being displaced in the biggest refugee crisis that the world had ever seen up until that point. But that also triggered the destabilization that destabilized Syria and led to an even bigger refugee crisis, which the world is still seeing the consequences of. It led to the rise of ISIS and Al-Qaeda. Right? This is the consequence if you let these people away with it. And the Irish government, are you seriously going to go over and hand this guy a bowl of shamrock next week? It's disgusting. It is such a betrayal of our tradition of neutrality, of anti-imperialism, that we are going to get down and bend the knee to these bloodthirsty warmongers who are setting the world on fire. It's really revolting. Well, I do not believe you have the support of the majority of people. Most people out there can see what's going on. They can see the price we're going to pay for it and the economic price they are starting to pay themselves, as well as the horror that is beginning to unfold across the Middle East. But I repeat, there's a logic to this. And you know one thing I'll disagree with Deputy Murphy? When Trump says it's dangerous when certain people get nuclear weapons, he's absolutely right. He's dangerous. They have nuclear weapons. Donald Trump has nuclear weapons. Netanyahu has nuclear weapons. Israel is the only country that won't sign the nuclear non-proliferation treaty. Even Iran signed that. Right? And they were willing to do a deal over this stuff. Thank you, Deputy. Even though I have criticisms of that regime, the Omani foreign minister has confirmed it. So this is pure bloodlust and warmongering and imperialism by America and Israel and news are complicit with it. It's shameful. Thank you. Thank you very much, Deputy.
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