The Irish Government should follow example of the Global Sumud Flotilla

Refusing to take a stand against Israel’s crimes will be far more costly in the end for all of us than any Israeli economic retribution, writes Senator Chris Andrews 

MEP Chris Andrews on board the Global Sumud Flotilla.

For the past two weeks, I have been aboard the Global Sumud Flotilla, sailing to Gaza to deliver vital humanitarian aid. 

Aboard my boat, the Spectre, are 21 other activists from a dozen other countries, all united in our desire to bring an end to the genocide and man-made famine in Palestine.

I have taken part on three previous flotillas to Gaza, including on the MV Saoirse in 2011, in which I was kidnapped and held for a week in an Israeli jail. Unfortunately, the stakes of this flotilla are far higher than any before, both in terms of the risk posed to participants, and the urgent need of the people of Gaza for humanitarian aid.

Israel has routinely threatened our boats, attempting to misrepresent our mission as being anything other than peaceful. This is a clear attempt to justify future violence against the flotilla as we approach Gaza. 

Chris Andrews: 'There is absolutely no legitimate or justifiable reason for Israel to attack this flotilla. We are a purely humanitarian and non-violent mission, intending to bring food and aid to a starving population.'

They have made it abundantly clear that they will use violent force to prevent us from delivering our aid. Most recently, our boats were directly attacked by drones dropping explosive devices. My boat was struck four times, but thankfully we sustained no injuries or serious damage.

The Sumud Flotilla is due to reach Gaza this week. As we approach the Palestinian coast, it is hard not to expect that Israel will resort to escalating violent attacks intent on sinking, capturing or otherwise deterring our boats.

There is absolutely no legitimate or justifiable reason for Israel to attack this flotilla. We are a purely humanitarian and non-violent mission, intending to bring food and aid to a starving population. 

Israel’s dangerous aggression against our boats in international waters is another example of their complete disregard for international law, as well as their despicable desire to collectively punish the Palestinian people for not submitting to their oppression.

We should not be in this position. Ordinary civilians should not be the ones carrying the burden of opening up a humanitarian corridor to Gaza. The international community, and particularly the countries that purport to care about human rights and the rule of law, should have stepped in to stop Israel’s attempt to wipe out the Palestinian people long ago.

The United Nations and international experts have been unequivocal in describing Israel’s actions in Gaza as genocide. 

In the past two years, Israel’s crimes have been plain for the world to see on social media and on television. Over 66,000 Palestinians — many of them children — have been killed. Countless more are suffering from starvation and malnutrition, being prevented from accessing food, medicine and other basic necessities by the Israeli state.

People gather to show support for the Global Sumud Flotilla ahead of its scheduled departure to deliver aid to Gaza in Sidi Bou Said port in Tunis, Tunisia on Wednesday, September 10. Picture: AP /Anis Mili

The unfortunate reality is that the Irish Government, together with the European Union, have done absolutely nothing to hold Israel to account for its actions. EU member states, particularly Germany and Italy, have been actively complicit in Israel’s actions by providing military aid and diplomatic support.

Ireland, while offering many words of solidarity, has completely failed to take any steps to alleviate the suffering and starvation of the people of Gaza. We are, of course, a small country with little ability to dictate the actions of Israel. No one is disputing that. However, Ireland is still a sovereign state with the ability to choose to sanction Israel.

Our Government made the choice not to pass Senator Frances Black’s Occupied Territories Bill, instead proposing its own hollowed-out version this summer after several years of sustained public pressure. 

Likewise, the Government refused to ban the sale of Israeli war bonds by the Irish Central Bank, voting against Sinn Féin legislation to that effect. Let us also not forget that Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael refused to recognise Palestinian statehood until 2024, in spite of the Dáil voting for that basic step over a decade earlier.

The fact is our Government is afraid of any bold action on Palestine, unwilling to take any position that places it at odds with the direction of Brussels or Washington. The speculation of economic retribution by Trump or one of his fascist allies is enough to stifle our Government’s interest in human rights.

I do not believe our world is one in which accepting genocide is simply a necessary cost of doing business. Refusing to take a stand against Israel’s crimes will be far more costly than any Israeli economic retribution.

Anyone who cares about justice cannot sit idly by and watch as Israel tears down international law and threatens to bring us back to an era in history in which ‘right equals might'. If humanity is going to have a future in which peace and justice are a reality, the world needs to show leadership on Palestine. Ireland has an opportunity to stand up to American and Israeli threats and lead by example. We simply cannot afford not to act.