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TÁNAISTE SIMON HARRIS is leading a major diplomatic push to secure an urgent vote of the EU on suspending parts of the EU-Israel Association Agreement, the legal basis for the EU to trade with Israel.

There is also a push for a vote on sanctioning Hamas, extremist ministers, and violent settlers in Palestine.

Harris’s fellow foreign affairs ministers from Belgium, Slovenia, Spain, and Luxembourg have cosigned a letter to the EU’s top diplomat Kaja Kallas calling for the suspension and sanctions to be “urgently taken forward for decision” by the European Council.

This morning, Harris said it is unacceptable that the measures wouldn’t be considered until the next meeting of the European Council or the Foreign Affairs Council, both of which are not due to take place until the end of October.

“There’s a genocide going on. The people of Gaza can’t wait any longer. They’ve already been left waiting by the international community for far too long, so I will again be raising it today.”

Later today, Harris will attend a meeting of the Global Alliance for the implementation of the two-state solution, and address the alliance on behalf of Ireland.

Upon arriving in New York for the meeting of the United Nations, Harris said that he would be pushing for support from other member states to implement the proposed EU sanctions against Israel.  

He said he didn’t wish to be “part of a coalition of inaction” and that he wanted an opportunity to democratically vote at a council of foreign affairs ministers on behalf of Ireland. 

“I think it would probably be quite fascinating if those proposals are actually put on the table and member states have to say yay or nay.

“Because I think the populations of a lot of these countries want their governments to work to end the genocide. There’s a risk now that we’re using terms like ‘genocide’ as if they’re technical terms, or ‘famine,’ and they’re somewhat becoming normalised.”

The letter sent to Kallas said the signatories welcomed the package of measures proposed by the European Commission following its president Ursula von der Leyen’s state of the union address earlier this month.

Von der Leyen had warned Israel that famine cannot be a “weapon of war” within her speech and committed to a partial suspension of the EU’s trade agreement with Israel, although she did not elaborate what form this could take. 

She also announced a fund called the Palestine Donor Group. This, she said, will include a dedicated instrument for the reconstruction of Gaza, which has been left devastated by Israeli bombardment. 

The letter said that as Israel is in “clear breach” of its human rights obligations as specified by the Association Agreement, “the current trade arrangements cannot be allowed to continue.

“The suspension of the trade provisions will send a clear message to the Israeli government that it must change course and meet its obligations according to international law.”

The foreign ministers expressed their support for the suspension of Israel’s participation in part of the Horizon Europe programme, a seven-year programme which funds research and innovation. It is worth more than €90 billion.

The proposal to impose sanctions on extremist ministers and violent settlers, as well as proposed sanctions on Hamas were welcomed by the signatories. They said the EU must ensure that those who incite or engage in acts of violence and intimidation are held to account.

“We now ask that these measures are urgently taken forward for decision by the Council at the earliest opportunity,” it said.

The letter concluded with an urge for the EU to end any arrangements that “aid or assist in maintaining the illegal settlements”, and if the package of measures is enacted, it will make clear the EU’s support for the two-State solution.

Harris and Taoiseach Micheál Martin have both pushed the Palestinian cause while in New York, with Martin urging countries to consider recognising the state of Palestine following France’s announcement that it had followed in the steps of Canada, the UK, Australia and Portugal.

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TÁNAISTE SIMON HARRIS has said he intends to raise the overnight attacks on the Global Sumud Flotilla, which is carrying aid and activists to the Gaza Strip in Palestine in an effort to break Israel’s blockade. 

People on board the flotilla vessels said last night that some of their boats had come under attack from drones that dropped various items, including corrosive chemicals and explosive, non-lethal devices.

The fleet of 50 vessels is currently in international waters off the coast of Greece.

Israel said on Monday it would not allow the boats to reach Gaza.

There were no injuries reported and the vessels were mostly only lightly damaged, although one member of the flotilla told The Journal that one of the boats’ sails had been ruined. 

Reacting to the news in New York, Tánaiste and Foreign Affairs Minister Harris said he was concerned at the reports from people on board the flotilla. He said he believes there are 22 Irish citizens aboard the boats, including elected representatives. 

“It is clearly a breach of international law to have any activity that is targeting a humanitarian flotilla,” he said. 

Harris added that although there is clear travel advice in place regarding travel to areas of conflict, it is also clear “what they’re [activists on the flotilla] trying to do here”.

“They’re trying to highlight what is a horrific genocide underway in Gaza and a man-made famine that is starving civilians, that’s starving children.”

The Tánaiste said he would be raising this issue during a meeting of the global alliance for implementation of the two-State solution and working with his counterparts in countries that also have citizens on the flotilla to ensure their safety.

One of the Irish politicians taking part in the voyage to Gaza is Sinn Féin Senator Chris Andrews.

Despite the intimidation overnight, Andrews and others aboard the flotilla boats have said they remain undeterred. 

Andrews said in a post on X his vessel had been “attacked by multiple drones overnight” and hit by “four different devices”. 

“The bloodthirsty Israeli regime must be stopped,” Andrews said.

“This is the most serious assault by Israel on this flotilla since it first departed from Barcelona over three weeks ago.

He said the Irish government “needs to act” by sending an observer boat to follow the flotilla.

“The Irish Government has a responsibility to protect its citizens on this flotilla, as well as to stand up for human rights and justice,” Andrews said in a statement. 

He also called on members of the public to contact the Department of Foreign Affairs the Taoiseach, the Tánaiste, and local public representatives to call on them “to intervene to protect this flotilla”.

Italian navy 

Italy, meanwhile, has dispatched a navy frigate to assist its citizens and politicians on board boats in the aid flotilla.

Italy’s foreign minister, Antonio Tajani, has asked the Italian Embassy in Tel Aviv “to gather information and to reiterate its previous request to the Israeli government to guarantee the absolute protection of the personnel on board”.

Italian Defence Minister Guido Crosetto said he had dispatched the navy vessel “to ensure assistance to the Italian citizens on the ‘Flotilla’”.

“The vessel is already en route to the area for possible rescue operations”, he said.

Crosetto expressed “the strongest condemnation” of the “attack” on the flotilla using “drones by currently unidentified perpetrators”.

Sinn Féin MEP Lynn Boylan said this morning that she would be writing to the EU Commission “and urging them to make immediate calls for the safe passage of this aid”.

“These are civilian ships, that are carrying humanitarian aid for the starving people of Gaza,” she said.

“The EU must not stand idly by while innocent civilians are put in danger by doing what the EU hasn’t had the courage to do.”

Intimidation

Leigh Brosnan, a barrister from Ireland who is aboard the flotilla’s independent legal support boat, told The Journal that there had been at least ten drone attacks. 

She is part of a group of lawyers who are acting as independent observers monitoring the situation.  

Brosnan said that the drones used last night were not the same type they have seen surveiling the fleet. They were larger and had no lights to make them visible. 

She said that while last night’s incident did not involve lethal force, it still represented an escalation.

“It could be categorized as kind of more psychological and intimidatory,” she said.

“However, it does also represent a significant escalation of acts of aggression and of dangerous, harmful acts towards completely unarmed, non-violent civilians.”

Videos posted on the group’s Instagram account show flashes in the night as explosions are heard near the boats in the flotilla. 

“Multiple drones, unidentified objects dropped, communications jammed and explosions heard from a number of boats,” the Global Sumud Flotilla said in a statement, without adding whether there were any casualties.

“We are witnessing these psychological operations firsthand, right now, but we will not be intimidated,” the statement said.

German human rights activist and flotilla member Yasemin Acar said in a video she posted on Instagram that five vessels had been attacked.

“We are carrying only humanitarian aid,” she said. “We have no weapons. We pose no threat to anyone. It is Israel who is killing thousands of people (and) starving a whole population.”

In an earlier video, Acar said the activists had “sighted 15 to 16 drones”, adding that their radios had been jammed as loud music could be heard.

One video posted by the flotilla’s official Instagram page showed an explosion it said it recorded from the Spectre boat at “01:43 GMT +3″.

In another video posted by the same page, Brazilian activist Thiago Avila said four boats had been “targeted with drones throwing devices” just before another explosion was heard in the background.

Not the first time

The Global Sumud Flotilla set sail from Barcelona earlier this month and is currently made up of 51 vessels, most of which are situated off the Greek island of Crete.

Sumud is the Arabic word for steadfastness. 

Those on board the boats are sailing to the Gaza Strip in Palestine, which is under an Israeli siege that has created a famine in parts of the territory. After nearly two years of its war on Gaza, Israel has killed more than 65,000 people and been accused of committing genocide.

The flotilla had already been targeted in two suspected drone attacks in Tunisia, where its boat had been anchored before resuming its voyage towards Gaza.

Among its high-profile participants is environmental activist Greta Thunberg, who said today that her government in Sweden has offered the flotilla no support. 

Israel blocked two earlier attempts by activists to reach Gaza by sea in June and July.

While Israel claims it allows aid into the Gaza Strip unhindered, NGOs, UN agencies and governments that have sent aid all say this is not the case. 

A report published by the medical charity Doctors Without Borders (MSF) yesterday details the arbitrary and inconsistent restrictions on the passage of food, medical supplies and other items into Gaza. 

“Rules, procedures and requirements changed frequently, forcing humanitarian actors constantly to adjust and reconfigure their approaches,” the report said. 

With reporting from AFP and Christina Finn in New York