1 week Ago
FOUR SENATORS TODAY will seek to introduce an arms embargo on Israel through a bill blocking the exportation and transit of weapons through Ireland to the country. Independent senators Alice-Mary Higgins, Eileen Flynn, Lynn Ruane and Frances Black will bring the to the Seanad, which calls for “restrictions” on any weapons shipments through Ireland to Israel. The four senators propose to provide inspection powers to the relevant authorities and justify the restrictions by citing a .
The flow of weapons to Israel is leading to escalating violence and destruction in Gaza, the bill states, and if Ireland is “committed” to de-escalation and disarmament, it must enact the embargo. Transport Minister Darragh O’Brien would be given the permission to appoint officers to conduct inspections of aircraft leaving to travel through the country’s airspace under the act. He would also be required to report back on the officers’ work every three months.
Higgins, Flynn, Ruane and Black are seeking to implement the bill as soon as it is agreed. It is currently being discussed in the Seanad will be brought to the Dáil in later stages. In August 2024, then-Taoiseach Simon Harris said that month.
The aircraft was a cargo plane, which landed in Israel and reportedly had munitions on board. As reports of flights continued, the state began to . Then-integration minister and government leader Roderic O’Gorman told reporters that Ireland needed to take “strong action” if flyovers continued.
A demonstration will take place outside the Dáil this afternoon in support of the senators’ legislation by a number of anti-war and pro-Palestine groups..
