Latest news with #MacNamara
Irish Independent
2 days ago
- Politics
- Irish Independent
Limerick woman in group marching across the Sinai desert to Gaza to demand an end to the slaughter
Ms MacNamara is joining roughly 2,500 international participants from more than 60 countries calling for immediate humanitarian access to the besieged region and an end to the 19-month onslaught on Gaza. The march, which officially begins on June 13, is expected to take two to three days, covering ground from a town in the Sinai Desert to the Rafah border crossing, the only entry point between Egypt and Gaza. Ms MacNamara says the group hopes to arrive by June 15, marching primarily in the cooler hours of early morning and evening to avoid the extreme desert heat. While they acknowledge they cannot physically break the blockade on Gaza, the group's aim is to call for the permanent opening of the Rafah crossing for true humanitarian aid, an end to military occupation of Gaza, reconstruction efforts and a stop to the colonisation. 'It's symbolic, yes, but it's also urgent. The goal is to pressure for the opening of humanitarian corridors, for real international oversight, and ultimately for an end to the occupation,' Ms MacNamara told the Irish Independent via phone from Cairo. Ms MacNamara, who grew up in Limerick city, says she travelled to Egypt alone, but quickly found community with the diverse group of marchers. 'A lot of the people here aren't seasoned activists,' she stated. 'They're regular people who just couldn't stay silent any longer. There's an incredible number of women involved, one participant is 70-years-old and ready to walk across the desert for Palestine.' The march to Gaza is just one of several large-scale international actions unfolding this week. Ms MacNamara also referenced a second convoy currently making its way from Tunisia across North Africa, believed to include up to 4,000 participants. Asked if she was nervous about potential risks at the heavily restricted Rafah crossing, Ms MacNamara was unequivocal: 'No. Nothing we face can compare to what people in Gaza are living through daily. ADVERTISEMENT 'Children are starving, injured without anaesthetic, and hospitals are in ruins. This is a war on children and someone has to act.' Though she has engaged in activism at home on local issues, this marks her first international effort of this scale. Follow Independent Limerick on Facebook 'It's the most serious cause I've ever joined,' she reveals. 'It feels like the Holocaust in real-time and no one can say they didn't know. We're all watching it happen.' The march is being coordinated with the help of NGOs and local organisers, though for security reasons, specific logistics are being kept confidential. Ms MacNamara confirmed the group, made up of people from Tyrone, Wicklow, Dublin, Galway, Westmeath, Limerick, Cork, Donegal, Clare, Mayo, Laois, Offaly, Antrim, Down, Derry, Armagh and Tipperary, are traveling light, with nothing but mere backpacks to keep them sustained. When asked what message she'd share with those supporting Zionist policies, MacNamara was clear: 'There is no excuse left. If you still call yourself a Zionist after witnessing this, then you should be ashamed. I wouldn't even engage with you.' 'We want the people of Palestine to know they're not forgotten. They are and must remain at the centre of this,' she added.
RTÉ News
19-05-2025
- RTÉ News
Girl scalded on Ryanair flight accepts €30,000 settlement
A 12-year-old schoolgirl who was scalded on a Ryanair flight from Lourdes just over five years ago has accepted a €30,000 settlement offer from the airline together with significant legal costs. Judge Christopher Callan told Sienna Darcy in the Circuit Civil Court that he hoped her "horrible experience" would not prevent her from travelling again as it was very important she travel as much as she can. Barrister Darach MacNamara, who appeared with McGrath McGrane Solicitors for Sienna, told the court that while photographs of the burns to her left hand made for gruesome viewing, he had to include them in evidence to reveal the extent of her injuries when she was only aged seven. Mr MacNamara said Ryanair staff had treated Sienna with cold water, cooling gel and Calpol immediately after the accident, in which "a piping hot meal including oil and sauce" had spilled onto her hand when it was served to her on the Lourdes-Dublin flight on 12 July, 2019. She had been brought to hospital on disembarking at Dublin Airport. A settlement offer of €25,000 had been rejected by Judge Michael Walsh in January as inadequate and Mr MacNamara said the airline had come up with an extra €5,000, bringing its offer up to €30,000, which he was recommending to the court. He said that although Sienna, who sued through her mother Aideen Darcy, of Oscar Square, Dublin, had suffered serious burns to her hand at the time, her wounds had healed very well without scarring and she had suffered no loss of function. She had had been psychologically impacted by the experience. The court heard that a hot pasta meal had been placed before Sienna by cabin staff on what was claimed to have been an unstable extendable seat tray. Mr MacNamara said Sienna had to have a significant amount of counselling in the form of therapy and the court considered a medical report from Dylan Murray, a plastic and reconstructive surgeon, and two reports from Blanaid Gavin, consultant psychiatrist. "It really was a horrific experience," Mrs Darcy told the court in written evidence. She claimed her daughter had screamed in pain and had continued to be in excruciating pain and had cried for the duration of the flight. On landing she had been taken by ambulance to Temple Street Children's Hospital for treatment and had been required to attend the hospital on numerous occasions. Judge Callan said he was happy to approve the settlement offer of €30,000 to include special damages of €2,610.
Sunday World
19-05-2025
- Health
- Sunday World
Girl (12) scalded on Ryanair flight gets €30,000
A 'piping hot meal including oil and sauce' had spilled onto her hand when it was served to her on the Lourdes-Dublin flight A 12-year-old schoolgirl, who was scalded on a Ryanair flight from Lourdes just over five years ago, has accepted a €30,000 settlement offer from the airline together with significant legal costs. Judge Christopher Callan told Sienna Darcy in the Circuit Civil Court today he hoped her 'horrible experience' would not prevent her from travelling again as it was very important she travel as much as she can. Barrister Darach MacNamara, who appeared with McGrath McGrane Solicitors for Sienna, told the court that while photographs of the burns to her left hand made for gruesome viewing he had to include them in evidence to reveal the extent of her injuries when she was only aged seven. Mr MacNamara said Ryanair staff had treated Sienna with cold water, cooling gel and Calpol immediately after the accident in which 'a piping hot meal including oil and sauce' had spilled onto her hand when it was served to her on the Lourdes-Dublin flight on 12th July, 2019. She had been brought to hospital on disembarking at Dublin Airport. A settlement offer of €25,000 had been rejected by Judge Michael Walsh in January as inadequate and Mr MacNamara said the airline had come up with an extra €5,000, bringing its offer up to €30,000 which he was recommending to the court. He said that although Sienna, who sued through her mother Aideen Darcy, of Oscar Square, Dublin, had suffered serious burns to her hand at the time, her wounds had healed very well without scarring and she had suffered no loss of function. She had had been psychologically impacted by the experience. Stock image News in 90 Seconds - May 19th The court heard that a hot pasta meal had been placed before Sienna by cabin staff on what was claimed to have been an unstable extendable seat tray. Mr MacNamaara said Sienna had to have a significant amount of counselling in the form of therapy and the court considered a medical report from Dylan Murray, plastic and reconstructive surgeon and two reports from Blanaid Gavin, consultant psychiatrist. 'It really was a horrific experience,' Mrs Darcy told the court in written evidence. She claimed her daughter had screamed in pain and had continued to be in excruciating pain and had cried for the duration of the flight. On landing she had been taken by ambulance to Temple Street Children's Hospital for treatment and had been required to attend the hospital on numerous occasions. Judge Callan said he was happy to approve the settlement offer of €30,000 to include special damages of €2,610.
