Greta Thunberg is set to speak at a Bohemians football club event in solidarity with Palestine during a visit to Ireland this week.
The Swedish activist will be in Dublin on Thursday to take part in “an evening of words and songs for Gaza” at Dalymount Park.
Médecins Sans Frontières deputy medical co-ordinator for Palestine, Dr Mohammed Abu Mughessib, will join Thunberg in conversation with Irish human rights campaigner Caoimhe Butterly to reflect on the recent flotillas to Gaza.
Thunberg has been frequently seen sporting Bohemians merchandise this year, having been given the team’s recognisable limited edition jersey – a collaboration with Fontaines DC – by Butterly on a flotilla in June.
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The band made an earlier limited edition shirt with Bohemians to raise funds for a West Bank sports project in 2023 and launched the second shirt this summer to raise money for the UK-based charity, Medical Aid for Palestinians.
Combining Irish and Palestinian motifs, it features an embroidered hem tag with a Palestinian flag and the phrase Saoirse don Phalaistín (Free Palestine). The words “I thought it was love” – a lyric from a Fontaines DC song – are printed around the neck.
Bohemians praised Thunberg and others who travelled on the vessel, which was intercepted by Israeli forces before they could deliver the much-needed aid on board, “for their courage in standing up for the rights and dignity of Palestinians in the face of Israel’s unimaginable heights of brutality”.
In August, a United Nations backed hunger monitor determined that famine conditions were affecting around half a million people – or a quarter of Gaza’s population.
Bohemians announced on Monday that the vocally pro-Palestinian Belfast rap trio Kneecap will be releasing a new collaborative jersey to raise funds for a refugee camp in the West Bank.
Dan Lambert is both the chief operating officer of the club, and Kneecap’s manager. Lambert is also the co-founder of Phibsborough cafe, Bang Bang, located close to Dalymount Park.
Rapper Liam Óg Ó hAnnaidh, who performs as Mo Chara in the Irish-language band, was recently at the centre of a high-profile court case accused by British authorities of showing support for a proscribed organisation.
Mr Ó hAnnaidh allegedly draped himself in a Hizbullah flag at a London gig last November and shouted “up Hamas, up Hizbullah”, referring to the Palestinian and Lebanese militant groups respectively. The case was thrown out in September over a delay in issuing the charge.
Kicking off at 7pm, all proceeds from Thursday’s event will be donated to Grassroots Winter Aid for families in Gaza, Bohemians said. Attendees are encouraged to wrap up warm for the outdoor occasion, which will include some yet to be announced “musical special guests”.
