Elaine Loughlin: As a small nation, Ireland has 'stood up' for Palestinians and peace

Smoke rises following an Israeli airstrike on buildings near the separating wall between Egypt and Rafah earlier in May. Picture: Ramez Habboub/AP

As a people who had to fight for our own legitimate right to statehood, Ireland has long held a special affinity with the people of Palestine.

The recognition of the Palestinian state, a move that will not be without its consequences, is a bold statement that makes it clear that both the people of Palestine and Israel deserve a future filled with hope and peace.

While the historic announcement was made on the steps of Government Buildings, Irish citizens must also be acknowledged for a dogged persistence in keeping the plight of Palestinian men, women, and children in Gaza and the occupied territories, to the fore.

Over the past seven months, thousands have taken to the streets on a regular basis protesting the horrific bombardment of the Gaza Strip — artists have donated works, musicians have held charity concerts, cakes have been baked, petitions signed, GoFundMe pages have been set up, and the Bohemian football team even welcomed the Palestinian women’s team to Dublin.

Perhaps we see our own history reflected back at us.

In recognising the Palestinian state, Taoiseach Simon Harris referenced a significant date in our own struggle for self determination.

“On January 21, 1919, Ireland asked the world to recognise our right to be an independent State,” he said.

“Our ‘Message to the Free Nations of the World’ was a plea for international recognition of our independence, emphasising our distinct national identity, our historical struggle, and our right to self-determination and justice.

Today we use the same language to support the recognition of Palestine as a state

As a small neutral country, it can be difficult to make a significant political impact on the world.

“It’s like a gnat on a windshield, it doesn’t even register,” was how one senior member of the Capitol’s press pool described former taoiseach Leo Varadkar’s Gaza interventions in Washington back in March.

However, within minutes, the historic announcement by Ireland to formally recognise a Palestinian state, had been reported across the world.

The BBC described it as an “important step”, a New York Times report stated the recognition by Ireland, Norway, and Spain was a “blow to Israel,” but a CNN headline claimed it would likely to have “little impact” on Benjamin Netanyahu.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is still determined to press ahead with a ground assault in Rafah.

In the short-term, Ireland’s declaration may not do anything to stop the ongoing assault, but it sends out a clear message to the Palestinian people that they are not alone — despite attempts to block the international community and media from witnessing the horrors being inflicted.

Thanking the Government, Palestinian ambassador to Ireland Dr Jilan Wahba Abdalmajid said: “What’s going on in Gaza at the minute and in the West Bank needs the international community to take action.

“This action, the recognition of the rights of the Palestinians, people that give hope to the Palestinians, that they are seen, they are heard.

They are not alone. The international community believes in their rights to live in peace and security in their sovereign state

Recognition of Palestine has been on the agenda for some time, it features in the Programme for Government drawn up in 2020 when Fianna Fáil, Fine Gael, and the Green Party entered power together.

However, work on this has gained pace since December, when Tánaiste Micheál Martin ramped up discussions with like-minded countries, often speaking over dinner on the fringes of foreign council meetings.

The Government, while criticised by some, has also been seen as taking a lead at EU level.

This has included lobbying for sanctions against violent Israeli settlers, and calling for an urgent review of the EU’s trade agreement with Israel.

Speaking to journalists in Jordan last month, the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees’ director of external relations and communications, Tamara Alrifai, cited Ireland’s advocacy as being essential at a time when countries were pulling funding from the agency

“The relationship of [the agency] with Ireland very much mirrors the principled stance of Ireland and it’s foreign policy to the Israel-Palestine war,” she said.

The recognition of Palestine by Ireland, Spain, and Norway has significant symbolic value.

In years to come, it will be accepted that Ireland “spoke up, spoke out, in favour of peace”, as Mr Harris said.

However, with Israel determined to press ahead with a ground assault in Rafah, talk of a two-state solution that would include self-governance, territorial integrity, and self-determination for Palestinians can seem almost absurd.

And yet, it is still the only option to resolve a conflict which has sown a hatred that has only rooted deeper with each generation.