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AMERICAN LOBBY GROUPS and representatives from two US states were among those who urged the government to vote down the Occupied Territories Bill, records show.
Documents released to TheJournal.ie under the Freedom of Information Act reveal how international groups sought to influence the passage of the Bill through both Houses of the Oireachtas.
In one instance, a member of the Massachusetts House of Representatives warned that the Bill’s enaction into law could affect the immigration status of Irish people living in the US.
Meanwhile, another letter from Indiana’s Secretary of Commerce told the government that jobs there could be put at risk if the proposed legislation was signed into law.
The Bill, which was brought to the Oireachtas by independent senator Frances Black, seeks to prevent Ireland from trading in goods and services imported from Israeli-occupied territories.
Although it does not mention Israel or Palestine specifically, it aims to prohibit “the import and sales of goods, services and natural resources originating in illegal settlements in occupied territories”.
It passed in the Seanad in December despite government opposition, before passing second stage in the Dáil in January, when Fianna Fáil and some members of the Independent Alliance abstained from the vote.
Tánaiste Simon Coveney told TheJournal.ie in December that the government would vote against the Bill after receiving from the Attorney General that the legislation was “not legally sound”.
However, other legal sources, including former Attorney General Michael McDowell, say the Bill does not contravene European trade law.
In March, the Irish Times reported that Taoiseach Leo Varadkar had written to members of the US House of Congress ahead of his annual St Patrick’s Day visit to outline the Government’s opposition to the Bill.
That followed a letter to Varadkar from ten members of Congress expressing opposition to the proposed legislation.
Other records released to TheJournal.ie under FOI also show how Minister for Children and Youth Affairs Katherine Zappone contacted Tánaiste Simon Coveney in relation to the Bill last year, and that two Fianna Fáil TDs wrote to Coveney in 2018 to ask him how Ireland could show solidarity with the Palestinian people.
Irish immigrants
On 23 January, the same day the Bill passed second stage in the Dáil, Indiana’s Secretary of Commerce James A. Schellinger wrote to Coveney and Fianna Fáil leader Micheál Martin to ask for the legislation to be reconsidered.
In a letter sent “on behalf of the State of Indiana”, Schellinger said he felt compelled to contact the two TDs because he felt that the Bill would “unfairly target certain countries or groups of people”.
He wrote that Indiana had a “strong relationship with the State of Israel”, which had collaborated with and contributed to the midwestern US state.
Schellinger raised concerns about the impact that the passage of the Bill could have on companies that operated in Indiana.
“While Indiana is committed to fostering cultural and economic relationships with Ireland, I must reiterate the importance of our foreign-owned businesses,” he said.
“Any barrier to these businesses’ ability to operate or grow on a global scale could have a negative impact on our economy and could affect Indiana jobs.”
The following day, Steven S. Howett of the Massachusetts House of Representatives also wrote to Coveney and Martin to express opposition towards the Bill.
Howett highlighted the links between the state’s strong economic relations with both Ireland and Israel, and the personal and business relationships between Irish and Jewish communities in the region.
But he warned that the Bill’s passage could potentially impact Irish citizens living in the state of Massachusetts, which has a high concentration of Irish-Americans:
If signed into law, this bill threatens to jail citizens of Irish origin and sanction Irish based companies in Massachusetts who engage in commercial activity with the State of Israel.
In doing so, Irish citizens would be forced to make an impossible choice, whether to return to Ireland to face prosecution or stay [and] violate the terms of their immigration status in the United States.
Criminal penalties
However, political representatives weren’t the only ones to contact the Tánaiste with concerns about how the proposed law would present difficulties for those based in the US.
In October 2018, a New York-based lobbying group called The Lawfare Project, which seeks to protect the rights of Jewish and pro-Israel communities, sent Coveney a 24-page memorandum outlining how the Occupied Territories Bill contravenes US state laws.
In an accompanying letter, the group’s director of research warned the Tánaiste that the Bill had “troubling” implications, and claimed that US businesses based in Ireland would have to choose between violating Irish law or US laws if it passed through the Dáil.
“With the enactment and vigorous enforcement of these laws, the United States has demonstrated its staunch commitment to harshly penalizing [sic] and eliminating commercial discrimination against allied nations and business concerns,” the letter read.
It said that violation of the laws discussed in the memorandum carried “severe civil and criminal penalties”, and that the group could advise the Tánaiste of the “perils” of the Bill if he required more information.
Correspondence from another US lobby group, The Jewish Voice, was also forwarded to Coveney’s office from Israel’s Ambassador to Ireland on 14 January of this year.
The letter, written by Isaac Herzog – whose father Chaim served as the sixth president of Israel – expressed “deep concern” about the implications of the Bill in Ireland and Israel if it were to pass.
It read:
This proposed legislation, which singles out Israel for penalisation of trade, is not only unfair and unjust, but it also sets a dangerous precedent which is detrimental to the relations between our countries and to the chances of resolving the Israel Palestinian conflict by a negotiated compromise.
I have always advocated for peace and reconciliation and I know you share my views on this terribly complex issue that is the Israeli Palestinian conflict.
Herzog said that if the Bill became law, he believed the boycott would extend to all walks of Irish society, as Irish people did not understand “the intricate minutiae of the territorial conflict”.
He also added that “most would deduce that it’s open season on Israel”, and urged the Government to try to prevent the passage of the Bill through the Oireachtas, saying that peace would be better served if it was defeated.
‘Defenceless people’
Correspondence released by the Department of Foreign Affairs also reveals how the Tánaiste was contacted by a member of Cabinet, two Fianna Fáil TDs, and local authorities who expressed views sympathetic with the Palestinian people.
On 20 August last year, months before the Bill passed in the Seanad, a spokesperson for Minister for Children and Youth Affairs Katherine Zappone contacted Coveney to make a representation on behalf of one of her constituents.
In an extract from a letter forwarded to the Tánaiste by Zappone, an individual urged the government to stop Ireland’s complicity in “criminal activity” against Palestinian farmers.
It read:
The right course of action is to ban all imports from the occupied territories, otherwise we are doing business with people who have no compunction about shooting at innocent children and using their military might against defenceless people to steal their land.
Concluding, Zappone’s spokesperson said she would welcome the Coveney’s views on the matter, although it is not known if the Tánaiste subsequently spoke with the independent Minister about the letter.
Two Fianna Fáil TDs also sought Coveney’s position on trade with occupied territories in Israel last year.
In January, the party’s foreign affairs spokesman Darragh O’Brien told Coveney that while Fianna Fáil would not support the Bill, the party was empathetic with its “thrust”.
“We are deeply frustrated with the lack of progress and the continued expansion of illegal Israeli settlements on Palestinian land, which are a flagrant violation of international law and an obstacle to achieving real and lasting peace in the region,” he wrote.
He asked the Tánaiste to commit to raising trade with “illegal settlements” with the EU’s Foreign Affairs Council and to seek solutions to the situation on a pan-European basis.
Months later, Limerick TD Niall Collins also contacted Coveney after conflict flared up in Gaza, and asked him to examine how Ireland could show solidarity with the Palestinian people.
“I and my Party are deeply concerned the the recent developments in the Middle East conflict, and in particular the disproportionate use of force used against protestors which resulted in dozens of casualties in Gaza,” he said.
I would appreciate if you could provide me with an update on your efforts to advance the two-state solution since the [Occupied Territories] Bill was debated in January of this year.
International law
Meanwhile, Coveney’s office also received letters from two local authorities expressing their support for the Bill last year.
On 3 July, Galway County Council, which called for RTÉ to boycott the Eurovision (which is being held in Israel) this week, told the Department that it wanted Ireland to become free from goods and services produced in Israeli settlements, and supported the Bill.
And on 15 October, a letter to Minister for Justice Charlie Flanagan from Wexford County Council, which explained why the local authority had passed a motion calling for the Bill to pass in the Seanad, was forwarded to the Tánaiste.
“Such settlements are illegal under both international humanitarian law and Irish domestic law, and result in human rights violations on the ground…” it read.
Israeli occupation and expansion of settlements in the Palestinian ‘West Bank’… have been repeatedly condemned as illegal by the UN, EU, the International Court of Justice, and the Irish government.
The letter asked the Minister to note the views of councillors, and said the council looked forward to his response.
The above pieces of correspondence were among 79 letters and emails sent to Coveney regarding the Occupied Territories Bill between January 2018 and 25 January, 2019.
All were released to TheJournal.ie under the Freedom of Information Act.
An example of the US meddling in our democracy.
@Jack Simpson: where do they not meddle at this stage?
@Jack Simpson: in fairness, if you’re going to use this as an example of “meddling”, then all countries meddle in the affairs of all countries. Our own government has, and continues to, meddle in US affairs, particularly regarding its immigration policy and seeking special status and arrangements for Irish immigrants in the US.
@Brian Ó Dálaigh: key sentence-”for Irish immigrants in the US” so they’re kind of doing their job. This schelinger dude isn’t elected by Israelis along with the others. And we don’t make threats. We just keep asking politely for green cards hoping that they will eventually give in.
@Bruce van der Gutschmitzer: it’s still meddling in US internal affairs. But, no, we don’t just “keep asking politely.” We fundraise. We attend Democratic galas and events. We bend ears, offering this, that and the other. We pressure them reminding them of the rather large demographic present in the US. To think we only “politely ask them” is naive dribbling at best. The US has a lot of vested interests in Israel. The Occupied Territories could harm US business interests in Israel. Hence, they’re involvement. So, as I said before, all countries meddle in the affairs of all countries.
@Brian Ó Dálaigh: you also happily hopped over my point that we don’t go around threatening the United States with throwing their citizens out of the country or attacking business interests. It’s appalling bullyboy carry on. The so called leading democratic superpower.
The majority of US citizens that are in Ireland are here legally. We can’t just throw them out unless they do something wrong. The majority of Irish in the US are there illegally. They can be thrown out. We Irish quite happily handed over our power of leverage to the US when we shipped our citizens over there illegally. The US has every right to use that as leverage. The flip side to that is that a large portion of the electorate over there is of Irish descent and has quite a substantial amount of influence over US politics. The US uses the hand it both built and was dealt just as Ireland does. I’m not arguing over rights or wrongs here. Simply that the original claim that was made implied Ireland did not interfere in other countries when evidently we do.
@Bruce van der Gutschmitzer: “general insidious and pervasive nature” is both a highly subjective and highly racist statement to make. Are you really going to continue a debate using racist language while trying to claim the moral high ground?
@Brian Ó Dálaigh: meddling? Trying to keep Irish emigrants from being deported back home who won’t vote for FFFG
@Brian Ó Dálaigh: when u read of how they influence university authorities to shut down pro Palestine student groups then yes I use these terms. Palestinian solidarity movements are emerging on American campuses. They don’t like the influence they’re having on their peers and where it might lead to in the future when these young adults become more politically active. Best to cut it off at the source.
@Brian Mardle: Brian a self-proclaimed pro Palestinian although strangely he always seems to come to the defence of Israel.
@Bruce van der Gutschmitzer: can the rish government not take the same position with China regarding occupying Tibet and with Turkey with its occupying northern Cyprus and removing the Greek population replanting with main land Turkish people and the treatment of the Kurdish people by Arab population in the middle east whom the Palestinian population happened to be part of the greater Arab population in the region in said we constantly here about gong on about Palestine by certain sections of the median and left wing politics which seem to have a dislike for Israel in general which by way have no wrong to the irish people
@Bobby wilson: Well it wouldn’t be an israel/Palestine article without Sammy, ahem, Bobby Wilson to land in and deflect without even the thinnest of thin veils. Keep bangin that empty drum, Sammy!
@Brian Ó Dálaigh: there we go. Only a few comments into the debate and you are already using the anti semitism card. It’s always the same with the pro Israel lobby. Try to cloudy the discussion with some erroneous statements, try to excuse the Israeli actions as defence, try to divert with false premise and then when all of that still hasn’t worked claim the position of the person debating you is disgusting and anti Semitic. You are literally wearing out the value of that term and making it meaningless.
@Bruce van der Gutschmitzer: Sammy.?
@Bobby wilson: well done bobby. Finally someone pointing out that Israel is no better than all the other oppressors and countries committing crimes against humanity. Should we sanction them like we have done to Russia? Or should we pretend they are a shining light of democracy and let them host the Eurovision?
@Bobby wilson: I fully agree that the Tibetans have also been treated in an appalling way by the Chinese and many here in Ireland support the Tibetans. But the state of Israel is killing children and in breach of human rights while it seeks to eliminate the Palestinian people. Some of their politicians have spoken about the Palestinians in ways reminiscent of another man who thought there was one superior group of people on the planet. And yes, I know Hamas has done bad things too but compared to the US supported military might of Israel their stones and rockets are pitiful. Still they get shot at point blank range in a space their ancestors have occupied for hundreds of years. We should do the right thing and put principle ahead of horse trading with the US and it’s bullying tactics.
@Bobby wilson: ah Sammy, will ya come out of it ya aul codger ya! I know tis yourself, ya pup ya. You and that drum of yours every July. You’re like a little child at Christmas. Speaking of which, marching season is upon us shortly. I hope you’ve got that lovely orange sash ready. And clean behind your ears, ya little monkey.
@Ivan Connolly: yes they are only democracy in the middle east.
@Noirin Kavanagh: what happening to children in Tibet..!
@Bobby wilson: fair enough then. Let’s pretend they are a democracy.
@Bobby wilson: your English seems to be pretty poor for someone whose name is bobby Wilson?
@Bruce van der Gutschmitzer: ..your mask is slipping there that’s quite sectarian remark to make there and its funny as some one who brought up Catholic [Nationalist] in North Belfast ligoniel ..Wilson name is both Catholic and protestant name …..don’t expect someone called van der gutschmitzer to understand that.
@Bobby wilson: sure you are! My winkys eye you’re nationalist/catholic/North Belfast and whatever other label you want to throw in as you’d know well who Sammy Wilson is if you say who you are. The Catholic dog in the street know who he is.
@Bobby wilson: and I’m making light of the inflammatory folk up north who side with Israel just for the fact that some nationalists understand and support the Palestinian struggle. Now would you like to admit that you’re of that persuasion already? You’ve already admitted you’re from Belfast….
@Brian Ó Dálaigh: I agree Brian, all countries do. I just think it is ironic coming from the US who are making a big song and dance at the moment about Russian meddling. They forget that Israel meddle to a much larger degree in their affairs and they continuously meddle in the affairs of other countries, whether it is statements like the above or full on regime change.
@Cormac Ó Braonáin: lmfao. Your comment makes no sense. Where am I coming to the defences of Israel. Some clown.
@Ivan Connolly: nope, I didn’t use the anti-Semitism card. I condemned Bruce’s portrayal of Americans. I never mentioned anything about Israelis. The fact that the US is in bed with Israel and supports the conduct of Israel against Palestinians is appalling. So, please stop lying.
@Cormac Ó Braonáin: where exactly did I defend Israel here? Are you going to lie again, Cormac? You seem to be awful fond of lying. I spoke about the perception that the US interferes in other countries while no one else does, as implied by the OP, when this is patently untrue. So, please retract your statement or point out exactly where I defended Israel. I never even mentioned them. That was you.
@Brian Mardle: I didn’t play the anti-Semitism card, though, did I? I wrote about Bruce’s apparent anti-American racism by using sweeping negative smearing characterising all Americans with a negative. I never mentioned Jews or Israel, did I? Would you like to point out where I did, you tosser? Or is it that you just like to jump to conclusions and have trouble reading?
@Brian Ó Dálaigh: to quote my favourite Judy-judge Judy “that’s a great big chunk of baloni” you’ve always defended Israel on here. We have a had a few debates, both of us in opposing corners. Either you have an issue with me (which plenty do) or you’re spoofing or both. I’m gona say both. To quote my next favourite spoofer on here, the bould Sammy Wilson “your mask is slipping”. I look forward to meeting your new account.
@Bruce van der Gutschmitzer:.. What difference does it make, what persuasion anyone is in this world..!
@Bobby wilson: none unless it impinges on others. I’m just trying to get to the root of your opinion, why you’d deflect in an apparent effort to defend Israel. I obviously think Benji and his merry men are anhorrent individuals.
@Bruce van der Gutschmitzer: how are Christian Arabs and LGBT people and other minorities treated under Fatah and Hamas control territories compared with similar populations in Israel and you wonder why I as irish Catholic have sympathy with Catholics [Christians] people in the holy land
@Bruce: Well that’s a complete lie, Bruce, because Israeli policy is not defensible, so I couldn’t possibly defend them. Please point out one of those debates. What I do is point out lies and mistruths when I see them, from both the pro-Israeli and pro-Palestinian sides, and there is a lot of that. I actually agree with the vast majority of your comments, and I do believe you made a simple poor choice of words above. So, yes, I believe you used racist language, but I don’t believe you are actually racist. I see in you someone who generally tends to defend the oppressed and supports their aims, including the aims of Palestinians. I, too, want a free and independent Palestine and abhor Israel’s policy of oppression and occupation towards Palestine. I have one account, and only one.
@Bruce van der Gutschmitzer: the only thing I can think of is where I probably pulled you up on a mistruth, as I have done with Cormac, and you, just like he does, misinterpreted that as somehow me supporting or defending Israel. Just because I am not willing to jump on the saliva-inducing, chest-beating concept of doing and saying anything, including misrepresenting facts, in order to support Palestinians and condemn Israel, does not mean I defend Israel. I prefer debates to be honest with actual facts. Without honest debates each side can claim the other is dishonest and we end up in a situation where trust, honesty and any possibility of peace, reconciliation and a positive outcome are destroyed.
@Bruce van der Gutschmitzer: and, just, for the record, I support the Occupied Territories bill and I did indeed boycott the Eurovision (which was actually annoying because I’m one of the few that actually enjoys the show – but only the final). I also do not like the power that AIPAC and other organisations have over US government policy. Government policy should be decided by citizens, and not corporations, organisations or foreign countries.
@Bruce van der Gutschmitzer: why is Katherine Zappone a self declared witch meddling in such matters and the state that Tusla is in
@Brian Ó Dálaigh: Americans are not a race so you are making yourself seem a bit foolish by referring to remarks critical of them as racist.
@Ivan: The concept of race is an outdated one, completely dismissed by anyone in the academic field. We do have such things as haplogroups which are shared, to some extent or another, with various different ethnic groups. Other than that, there are some peoples with certain areal features, such as colour. But, race itself does not exist. The term racism, while arising within the context of a global misunderstanding of race, applies to the fear, denigration or mistreatment of others as a collective based on their inherited characteristics, including customs, cultures, identity and language. This is basic dictionary stuff, so you should try look up the definition. So, to label all Americans negatively is indeed racist. Words, such as racism and fool, change over time. Welcome to language.
@Bruce van der Gutschmitzer: Christians in Gaza long for the day before Hamas took over and cancelled Christmas in 2011 .
Now be good little paddy’s and take this off the table or else!!
@Zippy: #apartheid #freepalestine #bds
Did the respective ministers reply, and if so, what were the replies? Hopefully something along the lines of ‘I acknowledge the points raised, however, the passing of bills is a sovereign act of any parliament and to request government ministers to interfere with such sovereign acts is highly inappropriate’
Terrible interference in our country’s governance and policies.
Once again, the Israeli tail wags the U.S. dog.
Only a matter of time before they started with the threats.
@Sarah: cloud cluco land
Yes let’s not buy anything from Palestine territories. Make the Palestinians unemployed and have a new Gaza on our hands. Well done SJWs . All companies will do is move out of the territories.
@Mumpsimus: That’s the point, if the illegal ethnic cleansers are forced back to whence they came, a genuine 2 state solution can be found. Israel continuing its apartheid ethnic cleansing of the West bank must be reversed.
@Mumpsimus: you are clearly attempting to deceive as it is the Palestinians themselves calling for BDS and one has to assume they know what’s best for themselves.
@Mumpsimus: “SJW” Is this still a thing in 2019?
@Cal Mooney: Palestinian Muslim population has exploded by 800% since 1948 while the Christian population in Palestine control areas is down to 80 thousand people from high of 400 thousand. while we have 6.2 million Muslims living across Palestine in 2018. speak to the Christian’s in holy land about life under Hamas and Fatah…the only country in the middle east Christian population is rising is Israel
@Bobby wilson: That is A load of crap. Christian population has increased in Palestine despite Israel’s best efforts. Christians living in Palestine were denied travel rights by Irael to Jerusalem on Easter Sunday. Google it, it’s not hard. Christians living in Israel do not have the same rights as Jews since Israel brought in the Jewish first law. Palestinian population has increased at only 20 percent compared to Israel. Christians and Arabs living in Palestine have one tenth the water rations of Jews. This is why the illegal settlers have swimming pools, but everyone else struggles for water daily. All of these facts are verifiable, whereas yours are twaddle.
@Cal Mooney: in 2006 there was 5000 Christian Arabs living in Gaza then when Hamas took over the population has drop down to 1000 Christian Arabs out of 1.7 million Muslims ..would like to live under Hamas control.
@Bobby wilson: Any chance you could post a link to back up your data. I can post loads of links showing Christians being denied access to Jerusalem on their most holy day because of the Israeli apartheid regime. I can post links showing that Christians admit to being forced to leave their homeland because of Israeli oppression. Go on, I dare you.
@Cal Mooney: just look up Christian’s in Hamas control Gaza 2019 and how they are treated and that does not even include all other tiny minorities in its mist.
Fascism in action. Seizing land through war is explicitly illegal under international law as is colonizing of that land and exploiting that land. It is legal to resist through any means legal or military, unless the rules of war are broken. America now opposes any resistance whether military or civilian, in Palestine/Israel despite its legality, . Then it punishes any country that seeks to uphold international law. WHO THE HELL RUNS THE US? HOW DOES THIS BENEFIT AMERICA’S REAL INTERESTS IN ANY WAY? Looks very much like Palestine isn’t the only country occupied by Israel
@De20: I believe it’s not even Jewish lobby doing this. It is the ultra conservative christian elements/ christian right is the one pulling all the strings at the moment. You can see it with the rise of anti abortion laws in many states in the US…
@De20: seizing land through war, is that not how most of the countries in the world have been formed.
@Philip Siggins: not 42 years later. That called colonialism or an invasion. You choose.
What they don’t seem to realise is that FG do not have the power to block this bill, they tried, good lord they did.
It’s like the Irish ambassador to Israel was called in and threatened on the eve of the vote and she simply admitted that she had no power or influence over the outcome.
@Sarah: This bill is against EU law….The whole point to being in a single market as the British have discovered is one can’t unilaterally change trading deal with an outside country…..Also Dail can’t pass a law that requires spending commitment….In the constitution only government can do that….Nothing to do with Irish ambassador to Israel…
@iComment: No it is not against EU law
https://www.thejournal.ie/occupied-territories-bill-4354083-Nov2018/
@Sarah: you are so anti trump you should change your profile pic to him licking a dog ;)
@Michael: Your point? Being anti-Trump is the sign of a decent person tbh
@Michael: Wow! How’s that for ridiculous speculation, I’ve never once mentioned Trump. I’m anti-Israel.
@Michael: Wait… what’s wrong with licking dogs… :)
Wait, so the bill doesn’t actually name any countries/states etc but does refer to “illegal settlements in occupied territories” and a load of (I guess) Pro-Israel Americans came out of the woodwork to oppose it…essentially admitting that Israel is indeed in fact illegally holding part of Palestine as an occupied settlement…
Well tell the USA and the Israeli state lobby where to get off . About time . Bully states of the world , together with U.K. and five eyes . They’ve become irrelevant and behave precisely like the despertares trying to fight their new utter irrelevance .
PS : And no journal filter , it’s not toxic . Just the truth .
Makes me sick to my stomach.
@Adam Kelly:
Best lay off the occupied territory fruit awhile so!
Shouldn’t of then, now or any time, do what is right. Palestine is going through what we did 100 years ago, kids being killed every week by the US albeit it indirectly.
Don’t know why they are worried. The Palestinian people are being ethnically cleansed in world view and will probably be gone in a few years
@John Paul: the Palestinian population has doubled in the past twenty years if someone is trying to ” ethnic cleanse” their not doing a very good job.
@Philip Siggins: large swathes of Palestine have had all Palestinians removed to make way for illegal Jewish only settlements. While the population may have risen overall, it’s only in the Ghettos that the Israelis pit the Palestinians into. Does that remind you of any historical action in the past in Europe?
@John Paul: Palestinian Muslim population has rising rapidly since 1948 and its Christian Arab population who are the ones that are disappearing under Palestinian control areas ….
@Philip Siggins: ethnic cleansing doesn’t just refer to population size ..
@Dermot Foley: some people don’t get that. The word population displacement is alien to them
@Cal Mooney: that’s not ethnic cleansing is it ?
The Irish government can justify making representations on behalf of undocumented Irish immigrants on humanitarian grounds, & should continue.
But they are illegal immigrants, so the US law must apply.
Similarly, the Israeli settlers in UN recognised Palestine territories, are illegals, & are continuing their expansion under the protection of the Israeli military.
So, our parliament is entitled to apply trade embargoes in support of the Palestinians, just as the superpowers extensively embargo other states, & each other.
The seizure of Palestinian land is a modern reprise of the Elizabethan & Cromwellian plantations in Ireland, & is unquestionably a progressive ethnic cleansing of Palestinian people.
Israelis need to study our history, & its lessons for their long term security.
Hopefully bills like this become EU policy. The EU should not be doing business with Israel.
Couple of letters and an envelope or 2 …
FFG truly lack morals..
Anti-Zionism is anti-Semitisn. This is an antisemitic bill, at odds with the direction the rest of Europe is taking. Hopefully, it will be struck down by the ECJ or declared inoperable by the Commission.
@Steven C. Schulz: what clown bull are u talking?
@Steven C. Schulz: congratulations!!!! You’re the first “antisemitism card” champion. Get your head out of your bottom. Because you are appalled by illegal land grabbing and the destruction of ppls homes doesn’t make you antisemitic. It makes you human. Being antizionist and antisemitic aren’t the same, Simple Steve.
@Bruce van der Gutschmitzer: good man least it’s not just me who sees that
@Michael: clowns tend to stand out.
@Bruce van der Gutschmitzer: seems to be like if we don’t go with it we are against it t
@Steven C. Schulz: Conflating antizionism with antisemitism is, IN ITSELF, an anti-Semitic act. Please take your antisemitism elsewhere, Steven, we have no place for it here.
@Steven C. Schulz: by your assessment there are a lot of Jews who are anti themselves? Have you thought about what you’ve written before you write it at all? At least one senior expert on European legal matters has already said this law would not be in contravention with European law so it’s got more legs than you would like to admit.
@Steven C. Schulz: Ireland is undoubtedly the most anti Israel country in Europe. What amazes me is that nobody challenges the terrorist organisation Hamas that embezzles millions designated for the Palestinian people. Hamas rules with an iron fist and any dissenting voices are quickly dealt with. Theres never going to be peace whilst they are in power, if there was the gravy train would cease.
@Philip Siggins: Hamas sickens many ppl here. But if you set up a terrorist/political organisation to oust the previous administration then that’s what you get. They also got into power for their extremist ideology as Palestinians are at their wits end. You poke the bear enough, you get bitten. Israel is reaping what they sowed. Question is…is this what they wanted all along so they could have an excuse to continue the destruction of Palestine??
“intricate minutiae” ffs allowing the wiping out of what’s left of Palestine is complex? give me a break, a strategic location for USreal
If ever the Irish people needed clarification on just how Israel gets away with its illegal actions against the Palestinian people this is it. You can be sure that as this bill gets closer to being enacted the pressure from Israel though all its massive network of influence and lobby groups will become so intense and the threats far more overt that this effort to sanction their actions will also crumble. It’s this formidable power over international politics primarily through US pressure, which itself is driven by AIPAC on US politicians, that ultimately leaves the Palestinians with so little hope and the desperation that results in the armed defence of themselves aka “terrorism” by Israeli propagandists. How they have held out in light of this all powerful coloniser, Israel, is amazing.
@Ivan Connolly: that’s a massive element that ppl seem to either willfully ignore or completely misunderstand. Call it terrorism or armed resistance against tyranny or self defence, if you were Palestinian and you’ve witnessed loved ones being murdered, interned, force fed and tortured, your home bulldozed, your business/school/hospital flattened and your right to protest literally taken from under your feet as they purposely aim to blow your knees off as a reminder not to protest again then would you not pick up a rock or fire a rocket or join what you perceive to be a band of freedom fighters? There are massive correlations to the injustice ppl had up the North and joining the IRA/giving them authority. Ppl supoort Hamas because they’re sick of the evil that is inflicted on them.
@Bruce van der Gutschmitzer: Hamas has many dissenting voices but they are quickly dealt with, not every Palestinian has the same extreme views i.e. the total destruction of Israel and complete annilation of the Jewish race. Imagine having that type of neighbour living next door to you and you wonder why they deal with these troglodytes like they do. Hamas do more harm to the Palestinian people than Israel ever could.
@Philip Siggins: of course. All they want is a life with hope and some sort of future. What sort of an existence can they have when their overlord has them in the worlds largest prison. See my response above on my opinion on Hamas.
I don’t like blackmail. But then you need to have some morals to feel that way, something the US abandoned a long time ago. We are always told not to give in to a blackmailer so Ireland should ignore the threats regardless of any possible retaliation.
@John Hagin Meade: What’s this pussy double barrel name? Are you Hagin or Meade? Pussy.
@Wild Goose: That name appears on my birth cert and on my father’s and grandfather’s also. It’s NOT a made-up name. Sorry to disappoint you.
The “Occupied Territories Bill ” is anti semitic.
@Peter Buchanan: nó! Yooooooou’re antisemitic, ya big silly billy!
@Bruce van der Gutschmitzer: no you are a terrorist fellow traveler, and a crypto-facist. Trying to finish off Hitler’s work
@Peter Buchanan: who told u?? Who’ve you been talking to? You been talking to Trevor? He said that Nazi bitcoin was just between us!! Ah you’re a hoot, Peter fair play to ya by….on a more serious I’ve come to realise Big Boss Benji is the reincarnation of Hitler. He and his administration view Palestinians as subhuman just like the bould Adolf himself. They’ve literally referred to them as animals. This was the language Hitler used to allow for the persecution and murder of the Jews. He’s even passed legislation declaring Jews as first class citizens while Arabs are now officially 2nd class. The guy is a fascist. He is modern day Hitler. It’s quite the contradiction oxymoron paradox whatever u want to call it.
There you are more proof, if needed who actually pulls the strings.
Conflating antizionism with antisemitism is, IN ITSELF, an anti-Semitic act. Please take your antisemitism elsewhere, Steven, we have no place for it here.
Jog on
Whoever thought of this bill must not be of this earth, they must be living in coco land.
A good watch if you want to learn more about the power of the Israel lobby in the US. JM’s book is good too. https://youtu.be/rzXS3tmZrcU
Anything to protect their country is just right anything that another commenter that said it I was anti semtictic is hateful
Germany has just made the bds mob illegal as it is an anti Semitic movement. Hopefully FG will grow balls and do the same here. Face down the virtue signallers , failed show band singers and a politician with a dodgy tax history along with the usual rent a mob.
@Beeb Stapelton: we don’t listen to the Vocal Minority. In 2 recent polls against Eurovision in Israel the Irish People supported Eurovision in Israel.
With any luck, Israel will BDS Ireland and thousands of Irish and Palestinian jobs will be lost. Israelis, Jews and Zionists around the world are already boycotting Ireland even if the Knesset doesn’t.
America will have to uphold their laws and BDS Ireland but the haters know nothing about Economics, Law or History. It looks like the Brain Drain that Ireland has suffered over the years has reached Critical Velocity. We need a revolution to fix Ireland and this might bring it about.
The Irish lobby is strong in the US but the Jewish lobby will trump it every time..
So we are a colony of the US now… Where’s democracy???
US trying to play the bully as usual :/
#apartheid #freepalestine #bds
“The Lawfare Project, which seeks to protect the rights of Jewish and pro-Israel communities, sent Coveney a 24-page memorandum outlining how the Occupied Territories Bill contravenes US state laws.”
WTF…
Well the bill doesn’t mention Israel specifically only “occupied territories” so Israel are basically admitting they are occupying territory which isn’t theirs to occupy, hence making what they are doing, illegal.
I don’t fancy getting shot in the states anyway, so they can keep their visas
The amount of exCIA people who become lobbyists is scary as well as how many of them set up security firms and businesses linked to the US government.
Corruption galore?
So lobbyists influence the US government policies domestically and internationally, this is the main reason they invade countries as they always invade oil rich countries as it seems?
Then the US government under these influences doing the work for big business and calling this “security”, then use their tenticles of the IMF, OECD and the World Bank to control other countries by using money and debt to influence them, so having them by the ba11s in other words.
This isn’t democratic, it’s anti-sovereignty and evil.
have your say