Labour calls on Govt to table emergency resolution at UN General Assembly to address failure of Security Council in Gaza
Labour calls on Govt to table emergency resolution at UN General Assembly to address failure of Security Council in Gaza - The Labour Party
- Motion would call for the development of a sustainable ceasefire and peace agreement, and creation of an international peacekeeping force for Gaza to allow aid to flow
- Labour will seek support of Government backbenchers to take action for Gaza
Under questioning by Labour leader Ivana Bacik TD in the Dáil today, the Taoiseach failed to commit to demanding action at UN level for civilians in Gaza.
Next week, the Labour Party will table a motion in the Dáil which, if passed, would mandate the Irish Government to table an emergency resolution at the UN General Assembly, noting the failure of the Security Council to protect the people of Gaza.
Deputy Bacik said:
“Ireland is a small country but we have fierce diplomatic power and we must use it now to end the horrors that continue to unfold in front of our eyes in Gaza. Ireland must stand with Palestinian children and civilians. It is our moral obligation to bring the United Nations to task on this.
“The United Nations Security Council has failed to carry out its primary responsibility to maintain international peace. Labour will demand that the Irish Government table an emergency resolution at the UN to call this out, and to allow humanitarian aid to flow into Gaza to save lives.
“More than 55,000 people – including 15,000 children –have been killed in Gaza since 7th October 2023, and a further 290,000 children are on the brink of death. 14,000 of them are likely to die of starvation before the weekend if humanitarian aid is not allowed back into Gaza.
“This devastation is the ultimate test for the Security Council, which has failed miserably to date. There are no words to describe the enormity of the tragedy in Gaza, and words will do nothing to end the violence.
“There is a moral obligation on the Taoiseach to act now for the people of Gaza.
“Under questioning from me in the Dáil, the Taoiseach agreed that we need a surge of humanitarian aid into Gaza, but stopped short of agreeing to take the action we sought at the UN.
“Labour will be seeking the support of all Parties as well as backbench Government TDs to progress this motion next week.
“In the context of the general election campaign, Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil promised on national televised debates that they would enact the Occupied Territories Bill if elected. Yet here we are six months on, with no sign of progress to date.
“The international community’s continued tolerance of Netanyahu’s actions must end. The UN Security Council must be mandated to act now for collective measures to secure a lasting ceasefire, a sustainable peace agreement and for the creation of an international peacekeeping force for Gaza.
“Aid must flow, lives must be saved. History will remember our actions, not our words. The Government must support this proposal.”