Ireland’s cabinet formally backs trade ban on West Bank settlements
Irish FM says bill, which parliament could take up later this year, is ‘small measure’ meant to ‘maximize the pressure and conditions to bring about a ceasefire’ in Gaza
DUBLIN, Ireland – Ireland’s cabinet gave its formal backing on Tuesday to drafting legislation on restricting trade with Israeli communities in East Jerusalem and West Bank settlements, but the bill is unlikely to be passed by parliament until later in the year.
While Ireland does very little trade with West Bank settlements, Irish Prime Minister Micheal Martin said it was a “symbolic move” that follows Ireland’s official recognition last year of a Palestinian state, alongside a small number of other European countries.
The bill, which would ban the import of goods from settlements but is unlikely to include services, will be considered by a parliamentary committee in the coming weeks, Foreign Minister Simon Harris said.
A final bill will then go through parliamentary scrutiny before the upper and lower houses vote on it, likely later this year.
“In many ways, this is a small measure, but it is imperative on all countries to do all that we can to maximize the pressure and conditions to bring about a ceasefire,” Harris said, adding that he hoped other countries would bring in similar measures.
The move comes after Britain last week paused free trade talks with Israel and announced further sanctions against a small number of West Bank settlers.
The European Union also announced a review last week of a pact governing its political and economic ties with Israel, a step Ireland and Spain first proposed together over a year ago.
A bill limiting trade with settlements in territories considered to be under Israeli occupation was first advanced in 2018 by an Irish independent lawmaker but blocked by the then-government because the EU, not member nations, is responsible for the bloc’s trade policy.
However, the government late last year said that an advisory opinion by the United Nations’ highest court in July, Israel’s “occupation of Palestinian territories” was illegal and that the Jewish state should pull out of those territories as soon as possible, would allow Ireland to move forward on the issue.
The court was referring to the West Bank, and also to East Jerusalem, which was formally annexed and designated as sovereign Israeli territory in 1980. The court also said that despite the complete civilian and military withdrawal from the Gaza Strip in 2005, Israel has “remained capable of exercising, and continued to exercise, certain key elements of authority” there.
Jerusalem rejected the ruling as “fundamentally wrong” and one-sided.
The Times of Israel Community.