Committee urges Government to include services in Israeli settlements trade ban
The Oireachtas Foreign Affairs committee is making the recommendation after hearing evidence from expert witnesses in relation to the Israeli Settlements (Prohibition of Importation of Goods) Bill 2025.
Advertisement
The report containing the recommendation is expected to be published next Wednesday.
The Irish Government has said it will legislate to ban the trade of goods with illegal Israeli settlements following an advisory opinion from the UN's top court.
The International Court of Justice (ICJ) said last year that countries should 'take steps to prevent trade or investment relations' that maintain illegal Israeli settlements on Palestinian land.
Although the opinion does not differentiate between types of trade, government figures have indicated a ban on services is more legally complex.
Advertisement
Sinn Féin TD and member of the committee Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire said the 'vitally important' recommendation to include services received 'no push back' from any committee member.
He said that could encompass services across financial, tech and accommodation sectors.
'Clearly, morally, the same issue arises whether it is goods or services, you're still trading with illegal settlements that are undermining the potential for peace in the Middle East.'
He lamented the humanitarian disaster and widespread starvation in Gaza in what he called 'human rights abuses upon human rights abuses' in the Palestinian enclave.
Advertisement
The foreign affairs committee's recommendation has been welcomed by Christian Aid Ireland as 'hugely significant'.
The charity's head of policy Conor O'Neill said: 'Despite all the spin, misinformation and threats, TDs and senators from both Government and opposition spent weeks looking at the Occupied Territories Bill in detail, weighing up the evidence, hearing from experts and considering the impact.
'They have said unequivocally: it is time to ban all trade with the illegal Israeli settlements, both goods and services, in line with international law.
'This is a crucial vote of confidence and a clear message to Government that we must do this right.
Advertisement
'Ultimately it doesn't matter whether you're importing a box of olives produced on stolen Palestinian farmland, or booking a holiday rental in a stolen Palestinian home on a service platform like Airbnb.
'A euro of support is a euro of support, and the ICJ was clear that all of it has to end. The Oireachtas Foreign Affairs Committee have upheld this very strongly today, and Government must listen.
'We need to pass a full, effective Occupied Territories Bill as a matter of urgency.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
BreakingNews.ie
13 minutes ago
- BreakingNews.ie
Gavin Pepper agrees to abide by certain orders but denies filming finance firm boss's son
Dublin city councillor Gavin Pepper has told the High Court he is prepared to abide by orders prohibiting him from attending or filming outside the homes of staff of credit servicing and asset management firm Pepper Finance Corporation. Cllr Pepper, an independent who was elected in the Ballymun/Finglas area, has denied he shot footage for social media outside Pepper managing director Ian Wigglesworth's west Dublin home or of the businessman's son, who has special needs. Advertisement He told the court he and his partner have a child with special needs themselves and had every sympathy with someone in the same situation. He also said that when he was outside the Wigglesworth home, he did not engage with Mr Wigglesworth's son, and it was the child who approached him while he was talking on the phone to his partner. On Tuesday, Mr Wigglesworth and Pepper were granted an interim injunction preventing the councillor from attending the Wigglesworth home or filming and watching him and his family or from publishing home addresses of Pepper employees. That application was made ex parte - meaning only the Wigglesworth/Pepper side was represented - and on Thursday Mr Pepper appeared himself, saying he wished to be given time to get legal representation. Advertisement Cllr Pepper, who is also a taxi driver, of Plunkett Green, Finglas, Dublin, was also required to remove social media posts which contain footage of videoing which took place outside Mr Wigglesworth's home. Brian Conroy SC, for Mr Wigglesworth and Pepper Finance, said Cllr Pepper has a well-established association with the far right and social media posts promoting far-right ideas. Mr Conroy said that while Mr Pepper had since Tuesday agreed to some of the orders, he did not seem prepared to delete certain social media posts or not attend homes of other Pepper employees. Cllr Pepper told Mr Justice Brian Cregan he was prepared to comply with most of the orders made on Tuesday, but he said a number of allegations had been made against him which were not true, including that he had recorded the Wigglesworth family. Advertisement However, certain orders now sought in relation to deleting posts would interfere with his role as a democratically elected representative and his constitutional right to free speech. He needed time to get legal representation, he said. Mr Conroy said his side was particularly concerned in relation to certain posts already up in relation to Mr Wigglesworth and his family. These and other posts were clearly threatening and crossed the line in relation to freedom of expression, counsel said. His claims about Mr Wigglesworth's son "rang hollow" when there was one video in which Cllr Pepper is clearly outside the Wigglesworth home and there is clear identification of a minor who is a member of that family. Advertisement Asked by the judge if he was prepared to abide by the order not to attend outside the homes of other Pepper employees, he said he was. Asked if he was prepared to take down four specific posts, Cllr Pepper said he wanted time to challenge it "because they are making out that I am a bad guy". He did not believe "anything I said was defamation". The judge said he had an absolute right to express any 'understandable grievances about vulture funds", but the business was saying some of the posts clearly crossed the line. Pepper Finance Corporation do not think they can be called a vulture fund, the court heard. Cllr Pepper agreed to a suggestion by the judge that he would take down the posts until the case returns before the court in October, when he will also have a chance to get a solicitor to argue his case in that respect. Advertisement Business Couple allege Pepper Finance is pursuing them over... Read More He also said he did not accept that he was some sort of bad person, and he thought looking for extra orders in this way was unfair before he got representation. The judge said he would have the opportunity to address what he felt was tarnishing his name and an unfair portrayal of him so far when he swears an affidavit. The judge said he would make an order in relation to taking four posts of June 12, July 24, 25 and 27 within seven days of making the order. He also made similar orders on Tuesday in relation to other Pepper employees. The orders must be complied with within seven days of them being formally made. He also gave both sides liberty to apply to the vacation courts should anything arise between now and October.
The Independent
42 minutes ago
- The Independent
Conor McGregor loses appeal against civil jury's finding he sexually assaulted a woman
Mixed martial arts fighter Conor McGregor on Thursday lost his legal appeal against a civil court's finding that he sexually assaulted a woman at a Dublin hotel. In November a jury at the High Court in Dublin found McGregor liable for assaulting Nikita Hand, who says he 'brutally raped and battered' her in a hotel penthouse in 2018. He was ordered to pay Hand almost 250,000 euros ($285,000), as well as about 1.3 million euros ($1.5 million) in legal costs. Hand, 35, successfully sued McGregor in civil court after prosecutors declined to bring charges, saying there was insufficient evidence and a conviction was unlikely. The Associated Press generally does not name alleged victims of sexual violence unless they come forward publicly, as Hand has done. McGregor alleged that Hand fabricated the allegations after the two had consensual sex. He launched an appeal, but at a hearing earlier this month his lawyer unexpectedly withdrew a request to introduce new evidence. Three appeals court judges in Dublin on Thursday dismissed the appeal 'in its entirety.' Hand was in court for the ruling, but McGregor was not. The 37-year-old fighter, once the face of the Ultimate Fighting Championship but now past his prime in the ring, has become known for anti-immigration statements and criticism of Irish politicians. He has flirted with the idea of running for president of Ireland. U.S. President Donald Trump, a UFC fan, invited McGregor to the White House to mark St. Patrick's Day in March. McGregor also faces a lawsuit in Florida for allegedly sexually assaulting a woman in the bathroom of the Kaseya Center, home arena of the Miami Heat, during a 2023 NBA finals game with the Denver Nuggets.
BBC News
an hour ago
- BBC News
PropertyPal: NI house sales website bought by Dublin firm
PropertyPal, Northern Ireland's main house sales website, has been bought by a company which operates a similar business in the Republic of new owner is Dublin-based Distilled which operates the house sales and rentals other brands include the DoneDeal online car year, PropertyPal merged with rival site Propertynews, although the two continue to operate as separate brands. That deal came after the entrepreneur Cecil Hetherington bought into Hetherington is the founder of Used Cars NI which is also being bought by 2023, Distilled made a pre-tax profit of €12.2million (£10.6m) on turnover of € Marley will continue in her role as CEO of Used Cars NI. Likewise, Jordan Buchanan will continue in his role as CEO of companies will be overseen by a new Northern Ireland Board to be chaired by Cecil Hetherington.
