Labour urges attendance at Gaza solidarity march
Labour urges attendance at Gaza solidarity march - The Labour Party
- National Demonstration for Palestine – Today at 1pm at Garden of Remembrance in Dublin
Labour foreign affairs spokesperson Duncan Smith TD has urged attendance at the National Demonstration for Palestine in Dublin today at 1pm meeting at the Garden of Remembrance, with protests happening all over the country.
Deputy Smith said:
“With more than 52,000 Palestinians killed in 20 months of war, and no food, clean water, or medicine entering Gaza for over 10 weeks, we have a collective duty to do everything possible to end the genocide.
“The people of Ireland have been steadfast in their condemnation of the brutality of Israel’s war on Gaza. Today we gather to demand an end to the violence and killing, and to stand in solidarity with the people of Palestine.
“It’s more important than ever for people to turn out and show this Government the depth of our despair as the Israeli onslaught continues. In the last Dáil I published a Bill to provide protection to workers who do not want to handle goods from occupied territories, and I intend to put this Bill back on the floor of the house.
“Our Bill would protect the growing number of workers who are objecting to cooperating in the movement of weaponry, munitions, troops destined for war zones or any activities that might support the execution of war crimes or genocide.
“Furthermore, Ireland should push for the removal of Israel from international cultural, academic, and sporting platforms such as the Eurovision Song Contest and global tournaments. Normalising relations while genocide continues is morally reprehensible. This week we heard Spain’s Pedro Sanchez claim “We do not trade with a genocidal state” when asked in the Spanish Parliament about Israel – Ireland must stand up too.
“Israel’s actions have been abundantly clear. They will never change unless there is international pressure on Israel, like what was done to South Africa in the 80s. We must use every tool available to exert pressure and demand accountability. Labour will continue to push this Government to enact the Occupied Territories Bill and ask all those who can to join us in the solidarity march today.”