New Irish Prime Minister Simon Harris turns out to be a carrier of the same anti-Israel animus that his predecessor, Leo Varadkar, displayed: “New Irish PM on Gaza: ‘Reason has been replaced by revenge,'” by Leon Kraiem, Jerusalem Post, April 9, 2024:
In his speech, Harris addressed Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu directly. Harris received the only standing ovation of the speech when he said, “The Irish people could not be clearer: We are repulsed by your actions. Ceasefire now, and let the aid flow safely.”
First, the aid is now “flowing safely” into Gaza, in even larger quantities than entered Gaza before October 7. What happens to some of that aid when it arrives inside Gaza, where Hamas operatives manage to grab much of it for themselves, is hardly Israel’s fault. The world should be screaming to the heavens about Hamas’ taking a disproportionate amount of that aid for itself, but it apparently chooses to find fault only with Israel.
Second, the “ceasefire now” that Simon Harris calls for — he means a “permanent ceasefire” — would mean an end to the war in Gaza before Israel had achieved its war aim of totally dismantling Hamas as a fighting force. Hamas would be able present itself as the ”victor” in the war because it was still standing, albeit in much diminished numbers. The terrorists of Hamas would be lionized by Arabs and Muslims everywhere. Is that what Simon Harris wants?
Third, it is nauseating for Harris to address Netanyahu and claim that “we are repulsed by your actions.” “Repulsed” by what? That Israel chose to fight back against Hamas whose operatives happily raped, tortured, mutilated, and murdered 1,200? That the IDF has done everything possible — leafletting, messaging, telephoning millions of times — to warn Gazan civilians away from places that are about to be targeted? That Israel refuses to allow Hamas to get away with using schools, mosques, apartment houses and hospital sfor its men and weapons, but will go after the terrorists wherever they may be hiding?
Finally, he affirmed his party’s support for “a two-state solution, with Israel and Palestine living side by side in peace and security.” The now-prime minister reiterated that “Ireland stands ready to recognize the state of Palestine,” adding, “and we know what we’re talking about in this country. This island has one of the most successful peace processes on Earth.” At this point, Harris transitioned to a discussion of Brexit and its consequences for UK-Irish relations….
It’s a sign of Harris’ shallowness that he believes in that so-called “two-state solution,” which he apparently does not realize is merely a Palestinian tactic to force Israel to be squeezed back within the 1949 armistice lines, leaving Israel stripped of territory essential to its defense, such as the Jordan Valley, and with a nine-mile-wide waist from Qalqilya to the sea, which an invader from the east could cross, cutting the tiny state in two, within a few hours. When he says “we know what we’re talking about,” he means the peace that was achieved in Northern Ireland between Catholics and Protestants; he fails to realize that the war being waged by Hamas is completely different in its aims than those of the IRA. The IRA did not want to expel or kill every last Protestant in Northern Ireland, but wanted only to unite Northern Ireland with the Republic of Ireland. Hamas, on the other hand, wants to expel or kill every Jew in Israel — an annihilationist impulse that Simon Harris fails to recognize.
Let’s repeat it one more time: there is not any “blocking of humanitarian aid” by Israel. There has been a slowing down of humanitarian aid because of the need for the IDF to check every truck for weapons that might be smuggled into the Strip. There are further complications once the food trucks enter Gaza, both from Hamas, whose members seize much of the aid for its own members, their extended families, and their tribes, and from ordinary Gazans who try to grab food for their own families in conditions of chaos. Again, this is not the IDF’s fault.
There is no comparison between the atrocities — rapes, tortures, mutilations, murderers — committed by Hamas on October 7, and the attempt by Israel to capture or kill Hamas members in Gaza, all the while doing whatever it can to minimize civilian casualties, by warning them away from places about to be targeted. Something, alas, is wrong, politically and morally, with Ireland, when it comes to the Jewish state. To say that all this is mildly depressing is putting it mildly.
Phil Copson says
This is the classic “Coward’s Conumdrum” – “Is it safer to side with my friends or with my enemies?”
:Harris feel safe and smug accusing Israel of committing war-crimes precisely because he knows that they don’t, and that Israel will do him no harm.
And he cosies-up to Hamas because he knows that they do and they will.
John says
Is he a rellative with Kamala Harris?
Hoi Polloi says
“Something, alas, is wrong, politically and morally, with Ireland,” also seen in its mass importations and housing of unvetted military-aged males while natives are left to die on winter streets, all despite tremendous resistance from citizens. Citizens have posted many videos of these males harassing women and videoing children on playgrounds. The natives say Sinn Fein has sold them out.
libertyORdeath says
The Irish feel an odd comradery with the non-white peoples of the world due to the centuries of imperialism and slavery inflicted upon them by the same British imperialists that colonized their homelands. They’re even more pissed off because their struggles, especially the slavery and indentured servitude, are largely ignored by much of the world as they watch the grievance Olympics from the sidelines.
They hear people calling for a New country for terrorists while Britain still occupies a large chunk of their relatively small island.
I guess what I’m saying is that I can understand their position, but I think they’re missing the forest in the trees.
Hoi Polloi says
Someone here recommended White Cargo, about what’s been termed indentured servitude in the New World. It’s a great book and describes just how much more brutally those “servants” from all over the UK were treated than owned slaves since slaves had book value. I’m now reading a book about what was, in essence, slavery in Eastern Europe. I agree that it’s easy to understand the resentment but the current path only runs backward into darkness. I hope they reverse in time.
Mike says
What a lot of people in Ireland and elsewhere don’t realize, is that slightly over half of Jewish Israelis are Mizrahi Jews, most of whom coukd phenotypically pass for Arabs.
There is also a sizable minority of Falashas (black Ethiopian Jews) in Israel. There are even small numbers of East Asians (such as Thais, Vietnamese and Pinoys/Pinays) who are Israeli citizens.)
Plus, twenty percent of Israelis are Arabs (mainly Muslim, but some Christians too).
bagsgroove says
The Irish are antisemitic in nature. And in WW2 they sided with the nazis. A fine kettle of fish the irish are. Read James Joyce “Ulysses” to read about the irish.
FYI says
There ARE pro-Israel people in Ireland but the media and political elite have gone full leftard and are so corrupt that any reasonable analysis is impossible.It is fashioanle among the keffiyeh wearing Lefty hypocrites to be anti Israel:after all,lefties have to have a cause,a struggle and isn’t that why they bought that virtue signalling Keffiyeh and pally flag and maybe a hamas doll?The political elite as represented by the wooden harris do not actually represent the Irish any more than the self appointed Varadkar.They just think they do.
deze MN bee says
Harris
Hamis
Hamas
The names run into each other.
Pray Hard says
And Scotland.
The Istanbulian says
Obviously the Irish are still angry about the whole Judas iscariot thing. Or they just love imperialism as long as it doesn’t affect them.
SC says
Ireland has more than one deselection tactic. Hope the PM checks under his car every day.
Soosoosmum says
You’ve just noticed?
Timothy Noel Moynihan says
I am Irish and also pro Israel. I agree with the writer.
Angeli says
I’m Irish, Pro Israel, and I assure anyone reading this, this moron of a Taoiseach (Irish for prime minister), does not speak for me. And believe me, Ireland cannot sing too loud when it comes to human rights. The Magdalene Laundries, where unmarried mothers had their babies snatched from them, they were kept as slaves, beaten, starved and abused. All while the government looked the other way for the sake of keeping up an appearance of ‘morality’. Children sexually abused by roman Catholic clergy, again the government looked the other way. We have probably the most atrocious health system in the western world, patients are often left on trollies in hospital corridors, sometimes for days on end. Our public water supply is not safe to drink. We’re in the middle of a homeless crises, Irish people have actually died on the streets of Dublin and other cities for want of shelter. The government says there’s no housing available, yet they’re able to house unvetted economic migrants. I could go on, but I’d be here all day. Believe me, being Irish right now is little to be proud of.
Johanna Jahns says
Our politicians are bringing our countries down everywhere. Yes, and we have, when we subtract the whole islam and immigration isssue, still enough problems within ourselves to call it a crisis. Also a moral crisis.
I think the European Rise will start from Ireland or France.
The lack of moral literacy – seeing the different moral value of aggressive and defensive violence – is astonishing.
And to judge if Israel “goes to far” needs military knowledge and information about the exact situation.
Regards from Germany
Vera Levy says
The problem with you guys in Europe is you complain in your comfortable living rooms, or in a bar with friends
Those Arabs are taking over your streets. Your government is not functioning and is giving a hand to all of this, and you being silence
Agree to all this
We have not seen Europeans show their faces on the streets of Europe to put an end of this insanity
Hopefully you will wake up before they are destroying the whole economy of Europe, which is anyway not so good because of the war in Ukraine, which has been also initiated by the Democrats in America
I wish you well for the Irish people please wake up guys!!!!!
jerry glenn says
Ireland surges in the international Islamopandering derby.
Paul Burns says
I’m Irish and I’m embarrassed and disgusted by the ignorant, ill informed, prejudiced stance of the Irish political establishment against Israel. They have a foolish notion that the Irish people and the fictional “Palestinian people” share a common history. They have no inkling that the whole “Palestinian people” racket was a mere flag of convenience cooked up in the 1960s to enable the Arab Muslim imperialists to continue their jihad against the indigenous Jewish civilians under the pretence of a socialist “liberation struggle.” We have nothing in common with Hamass who are Muslim supremacists with ambitions to establish a Caliphate over the Middle East and Europe. Some of them even rant about world domination. Irish national aspirations have far more in common with the lyrics of Hatikva, the Jewish national anthem.