Presidential election candidate Catherine Connolly said violence was “never justified”, in response to a question about the IRA’s campaign in Northern Ireland during the Troubles.
Ms Connolly is running for the presidency with the backing of Sinn Féin, which believes the IRA’s armed campaign was justified to take on the British state.
Asked at a press conference in Dublin on Tuesday if she believed it was justified, Ms Connolly said: “I think violence was never justified and I say that from a position as a mother and a pacifist.”
Asked whether she made her view on the matter clear to Sinn Féin, she replied: “I am delighted that Sinn Féin have come behind me as I am delighted the Social Democrats, People Before Profit [have also done].”
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Ms Connolly said Sinn Féin was supporting her “because of the characteristics that they see in me as the future president of Ireland” and that “there have been no deals, no agreements” with the party.
“We have absolutely nothing to gain and everything to lose by not using our voice for peace, for championing neutrality in the most proactive, positive way by being a voice that articulates the threat, the existential threat posed by climate change, a voice that recognises the invaluable work being done by communities on the ground in all range of work.”
Earlier, Ms Connolly denied ever being “equivocal” on Hamas, a day after saying the proscribed terrorist group was “part of the fabric” of the Palestinian people.
She had told the BBC she disagreed with the suggestion that Hamas can have no role in a future Palestinian state, saying this was a matter for Palestinians to decide themselves.
Her comments about Hamas were condemned by Taoiseach Micheál Martin, who said the group cannot be part of Gaza’s future.
Speaking on RTÉ Radio on Tuesday, Ms Connolly condemned Israel and Hamas for committing war crimes and that she hoped both sides would be held to account.
She said she “utterly condemned” the actions of Hamas on October 7th, adding that Israel was “out of control” at this point and “there is a genocide going on in Palestine”.
When asked if she accepted Hamas was a terrorist organisation, Ms Connolly said Israel had also been designated a terrorist state, that history did not start on October 7th, 2023, and she hoped the conflict would be resolved.
Tánaiste Simon Harris on Tuesday said Hamas offers the people of Palestine “no future”. Speaking to reporters at the United Nations in New York, the Minister for Foreign Affairs said the Irish position in relation to Hamas “is absolutely crystal clear”.
“Hamas is a despicable, illegal terrorist organisation that has brought nothing but pain to the people of Israel and the people of Palestine,” he said.
Sinn Féin TD Matt Carthy said Hamas is “part of the situation in Palestine” and “there’s no doubt about that”.
He said he believes what Ms Connolly said is “consistent” with what has been said by all parties in the Oireachtas. He said the actions of Hamas were “war crimes” and “indefensible” but so too were those of the Israeli government.
“Whether we like it or not,” he said, there will be “no meaningful negotiations without those two entities”.
The Social Democrats said although they “would not have used the same language as Catherine”, the party believes “it is up to the Palestinian people to decide who their political representatives should be, following free and fair elections”.
Green Party leader Roderic O’Gorman, who has also backed Ms Connolly, said he views Hamas as a terrorist organisation.
“I don’t see them as part of democratic governance of Palestine but I think we have to keep the door open.”
