President Michael D Higgins has said it is a “gross defamation” and “deep slander” for the Israeli government to describe the Irish people as anti-Semitic.
“I think it is very important as President of Ireland to say that [for Israel to say] the Irish people are anti-Semitic is a deep slander,” he said.
The President was responding to comments by Israel’s foreign minister Gideon Saar who on Monday accused Ireland of delegitimising and dehumanising Israel, and applying double standards in its response to its war against Hamas in Gaza.
President Higgins said: “It is a very serious business to actually brand a people because of the fact they disagree with prime minister [Binyamin] Netanyahu who is in breach of so many bits of international law and has breached the sovereignty of Lebanon, Syria and would like to have settlement in each of them.
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“To suggest that because one criticises prime minister Netanyahu one is anti-Semitic is such a gross defamation and slander,” he said.
President Higgins was speaking at a ceremony for the Ambassador of the State of Palestine Jilan Abdaljamid and Ambassador of Italy Nicola Faganello, both of whom presented their credentials.
He said he had initially put down the comments to a lack of experience but had then realised it was part of a pattern to damage Ireland in the eyes of the world.
He said that like Tánaiste Micheál Martin and Taoiseach Simon Harris had said on Monday, he wanted to assure the Irish people that the State would not be deflected.
“I do want to say how strongly I support the statements from [Mr Harris and Mr Martin],” he said, adding they were right in asserting that Ireland was a country that offered principled support to international law.
“Over the years I think it is the Irish psyche that we understand the words ‘dispossession’, ‘occupation’ and so on.
“That why we stress the importance of international law and also particularly in relation to the rights obligations of those who are in occupation on what is occupied territory,” he said.
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