Middle East

Ireland’s Catholic Bishops call for ‘all possible pressure’ on Israel to end Gaza offensive

Bishops urge Israel ‘to comply with basic human standards’ and call on Hamas to release all hostages and end its attacks

A Palestinian family in the rubble of their home after an Israeli air strike in Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza Strip. Photograph: Said Khatib/AFP via Getty

Patsy McGarry
Tue Mar 5 2024 - 16:00

Ireland’s Catholic Bishops have called for “an immediate end to the daily horror of killing, wounding and destruction of property and infrastructure” in Gaza.

In a statement on Tuesday coinciding with their Spring meeting in Maynooth, they said they joined “with many in our parishes, together with all people of goodwill” to call for an end to the war.

They urged “the Israeli government to comply with basic human and international standards in ensuring that Palestinians have full and unimpeded access to food, water and basic safety requirements”. They also called on Hamas “to release all hostages and to end missile attacks on Israel”.

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The bishops said: “All possible pressure should be applied to prevail upon Israel to desist from military operations that impact so horrendously on innocent civilians. Equally, any international support for Hamas terrorism is utterly unacceptable.”

They accused the international community of failing “to vindicate the right of the Palestinian people to a safe homeland, with statehood and freedom of movement, as part of a two-state solution which recognises both Israel and Palestine”.

Attacks on Palestinians in the West Bank “which do not command as much attention in the public sphere, are also to be condemned. What is happening in this region cannot be morally justified,” they said.

“The current aggression is not a war between Jews and Arabs; people of all faiths, including many of the Jewish tradition, oppose what is happening and the effect it is having not only on Israel and Palestine but throughout the wider Middle East and further afield,” they pointed out.

“There is no future in the perpetuation of conflict and human suffering. This is especially so when one considers the intensity of what is happening in the Holy Land. The only future is one of dialogue and the putting in place of a sustainable plan for a just peace for Palestinians and Israelis and that brings to an end the occupation that has for far too long denied Palestinians their rights and freedoms,” they said.

“In this Season of Lent, we Christians prepare for the celebration of the Paschal Mystery of Christ’s Death and Resurrection, as Muslims prepare for the Season of Ramadan and Jews prepare for the celebration of Passover,” they urged people “to continue praying and fasting for the intention of peace.”

Patsy McGarry

Patsy McGarry

Patsy McGarry is a contributor to The Irish Times

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