Ireland's Taoiseach Micheál Martin called the situation in Gaza ‘hell on earth’. He told The Europe Conversation that Israel is committing war crimes, and criticised the EU’s lack of response. Food and medicine have been blocked from entering the besieged area for almost 60 days.

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Israel and Iran have agreed a ceasefire after a twelve day conflict. Meanwhile, Israel strikes in Gaza continue with the humanitarian crisis deepening.

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The Irish Prime Minister, Micheál Martin, has described the situation in Gaza as "hell on earth" and has raised concerns about the European Union's response to the humanitarian crisis there. Martin made these remarks during an interview with Euronews and after a meeting with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. He called for the reopening of the EU-Israel association agreement and addressed the ongoing trade discussions between the EU and the United States.

Martin condemned the actions of Hamas, including the kidnapping of hostages, and expressed support for the release of those taken during the Hamas attack on Israel. He stated that Ireland opposes terrorism and emphasized his empathy for the victims of the attack. The Irish Prime Minister reiterated that innocent people were targeted and described his visit to a kibbutz affected by the violence.

However, Martin was also critical of Israel's response to the attack. He said that the Israeli military campaign in Gaza had lost its moral compass, highlighting the prolonged blockade of food and essential supplies as a key concern. According to Martin, blocking necessities for nearly two months constitutes a war crime, and he called for the restoration of a ceasefire and the release of all hostages.

Relations between Ireland and Israel have previously been strained, with Israel having characterized Irish policy as "extreme anti-Israeli." The full interview with Micheál Martin is scheduled to be broadcast on The Europe Conversation.



Irish PM says Gaza is 'hell on earth'

The Irish Prime Minister, Michael Martin, has described Gaza as hell on earth and criticized the EU's lack of response to the humanitarian situation in Gaza, and reiterated calls to reopen the EU-Israel association agreement. The Prime Minister met with Commission President Ursula von der Leyen to discuss this as well as the ongoing trade war with the U.S. Speaking with Euronews, he said Ireland condemns Hamas terrorism and wants all the hostages kidnapped by Hamas released, but says Israel's war has lost its moral compass. It's quite shocking what is now happening within Gaza. To have an effective blockade for 50 days and more, 60 days maybe now, in terms of food, in terms of the essentials of life, the bare necessities of life, in my view must be considered a war crime. And I don't say that easily. I want a resolution. We want the restoration of the ceasefire. We want the release of all hostages. Israel launched its war in Gaza in response to the Hamas attack on October 7th of 2023. In my view, it was shocking to take people as hostages. These were innocent people at a concert in their kibbutz. I went to Kibbutz Beirut myself to see at first hand the impact of the horrific Hamas attack on Israel. And that was shocking and horrible, and I've condemned it from the outset, and I went there to show empathy with the people who had been attacked. So all those, I mean, the hostages should have been released a long time ago. But the war that has been waged in response, in my view, has lost any moral compass at this stage in terms of its unacceptable impact on the civilian population and on children. Israel described in the past the Irish policy as extreme anti-Israeli. You can watch the whole interview next Tuesday on The Europe Conversation.

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