Irish lawmakers welcome defeat of anti-Israel boycott motion

Irish lawmakers have welcomed the defeat of an anti-Israel boycott motion by a councillor who wanted the country to stop importing Israeli military goods.

Cllr Brendan Young’s home county of Kildare is home to Ireland’s largest military base and his motion urged the Irish Army and Department of Defence to stop importing Israeli military equipment.

Citing “possible war crimes” and “serious human rights violations,” he argued that Israel’s “long-standing systemic impunity for international law violations has allowed the recurrence of grave violations without consequence”.

He added: “Israeli military companies profit from the continued blockade of Gaza and the denial of human and civil rights to Palestinians.”

After Kildare County Council voted down the motion on Monday, grassroots campaigners from Irish4Israel said: “We welcome the decision to reject this loaded and one sided motion.”