'Israel could stop sharing intelligence with Ireland if it recognises Palestine as a state'

Moves by countries such as Spain and Ireland towards recognising Palestine come against the background of Israel's continued breaches of human rights in Gaza. Stock picture

Israel could deny Ireland relevant intelligence or military equipment if the Irish Government formally recognises Palestine as a state, security sources have indicated.

Sources stress the right of the Government to push for recognition of Palestine as a nation state because of Israel’s breaches of international human rights law in Gaza, including the widespread killing of innocent civilians, including children.

However, they say there could be security consequences, pointing out that Israel is a highly securitised state with a firm foreign policy approach to countries seen as particularly prominent supporters of Palestinians.

Sources point out that Western security agencies lean heavily on Israel in terms of intelligence, not only on the Middle East, but also on the presence of Middle Eastern terrorist outfits or criminal groups either operating in Europe or linked to domestic criminal and terrorist networks in Europe.

In addition, Israel is a major supplier of military equipment to countries around the world, including Ireland.

Last December, it emerged that security and police agencies in Denmark and Germany arrested a number of people suspected of planning attacks on Israeli embassies — and that the intelligence had come from Israel security agencies.

In November 2022, it was reported that Israel’s foreign intelligence service, Mossad, tipped off MI5, the UK’s domestic security service, of terrorist threats, believed to be directed by Iran, against British citizens.

Irish security agencies are heavily reliant on the sharing of intelligence by other European agencies, including on the movements of suspects and their associates.

With tensions between Iran and Israel increasing, there are concerns that Iran could potentially back attacks on synagogues or on Israeli embassies in Europe.

Dáil records show the Irish Defence Forces and the Department of Defence spent €11.5m on “defensive equipment and hardware” from firms in Israel.

Tánaiste, Minister for Foreign Affairs and Minister for Defence, Micheál Martin, told the Dáil last month the equipment included drones, target sensor systems, optical sights and infantry platforms.

He said competitive tendering for Government contracts was an EU legal requirement and open to any company or country, subject to UN and EU arms embargoes or restrictions.

“No such restrictions or embargoes are in place on Israel or Israeli companies,” he said.