EU and US need to show 'real leadership' in peace talks, says Taoiseach

Palestinians displaced by the Israeli air and ground offensive on the Gaza Strip flee from Hamad City, following an evacuation order by the Israeli army to leave parts of the southern area of Khan Younis on Sunday. Picture: Abdel Kareem Hana/AP

It is almost impossible to find the words to explain the scale of the humanitarian catastrophe that is unfolding in the Middle East, the Taoiseach said as he called for an urgent review of the EU-Israel Association Agreement.

Simon Harris was speaking as peace talks are set to resume this week while the death toll in Gaza nears 40,000.

"These cannot just be talks about talks or another round of talks. They have to be talks that result in the violence stopping and the war ending," he said.

"I reiterate today that there is an EU-Israel Association Agreement in place, and that agreement contains human rights clauses.

I cannot comprehend how some member states in the EU seem to think that those human rights clauses are redundant

Mr Harris said that Ireland can only do so much acting alone, as we need the EU and the US to show "real leadership" in addressing the ongoing violence.

Our children and grandchildren will look back at this period in history with a sense of shame because the world will be judged by how effective it was at bringing an end to the war, he said.

Over the weekend, 100 people — including women and children — were killed in airstrikes on the al-Taba’een school.

The UN confirmed that the number of aid deliveries reaching Gaza has halved, with fewer than 80 trucks a day arriving in June and July, something which Mr Harris said is particularly disturbing.

The Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs also said that only 24 of 67 planned aid missions to northern Gaza have been facilitated by Israel this month.

Ireland condemns the wholesale loss of civilian life and is horrified by the many undoubted war crimes that have been committed in Gaza, the Taoiseach said.

Overcrowding issues

At the Tullamore Show, Mr Harris also responded to the ongoing overcrowding issues at University Hospital Limerick (UHL). 

There has been a significant reduction in hospital overcrowding across the country, but that performance has not been uniform across the system, he said.

"I know we have commissioned, and the minister for health has commissioned, a number of reviews — including [the former chief justice] Frank Clarke's report, which is due to be received very shortly," Mr Harris said.

A number of reviews have been commissioned regarding the ongoing overcrowding in University Hospital Limerick. File Picture: Brendan Gleeson

Stephen Donnelly announced in May that Hiqa would conduct a review into urgent and emergency care capacity in the region to determine whether a second emergency department is required.

The Hiqa review has not yet begun as Mr Clarke's report will be taken into the terms of reference.

Ahead of the conclusion of the Hiqa report, Mr Harris said that the Government is "open to the idea" of a second emergency department in the Mid-West region.

Meanwhile, a man was arrested on Sunday morning by gardaí investigating online threats made against Mr Harris.

The man, aged in his 40s, is currently detained under section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act, 1984 at a Garda station in the North West.