Irish Examiner view: Diplomatic ties need not hinder close scrutiny of Israel's conduct
Smoke rising from Gaza which was subjected to sustained bombardment by Israeli forces. Picture: Fadel Senna/AFP/Getty
The Government won two votes in the Dáil this week that were related to the ongoing conflict in Gaza.
One vote was on Sinn Féin’s call for the Government to refer Israel to the International Criminal Court (ICC), but that was defeated, as was the Social Democrats’ motion seeking the expulsion of the Israeli ambassador to Ireland.
Those parties are free to express their opposition to Government policy in this way, but it is debatable whether these were advisable courses of action.
The most obvious counter-argument was that expelling the Israeli ambassador, in particular, would hardly have helped Irish citizens who were still in harm’s way in Gaza; it certainly would not have aided Irish diplomats who have been working hard to get those citizens out of the area.
This is one of the thorny trade-offs of diplomacy, weighing up the safety of individuals in a dangerous situation versus a state’s longer-term strategic goals — goals that may be of greater benefit to far more people in the long run.
In that regard, the Taoiseach’s warning this week about Ireland losing its influence if it went too far sanctioning Israel was well made; both he and the Tánaiste have offered a measured approach and valuable leadership.
The other point worth making is that expelling an ambassador is an extreme step, one likely to be reciprocated in kind — and to cause the kind of rupture between two countries that can take years to repair.
There can be no doubt that Israel’s conduct in Gaza demands close scrutiny, but it is hard to see the value in breaking off diplomatic relations with that country. The influence mentioned by the Taoiseach can be wielded in a more positive way to ensure that scrutiny takes place.
With the conflict between Israel and Hamas continuing to rage, many struggle to conceive of a peaceful resolution that might develop out of a ceasefire.
For some observers the peace that was eventually brokered in Northern Ireland through the Good Friday Agreement is a viable model to follow, and with good reason. Another conflict that looked beyond resolution was ended eventually, and despite political ineptitude, the foolishness of Brexit, and occasional flares of violence, for the most part, that peace has been maintained. The progress made in Northern Ireland is held up as an example for the entire world.
The horrifying human toll that conflict exacted cannot be underestimated, however, and we were reminded of it again this week with another failed search for the remains of Columba McVeigh.
A Tyrone native, Mr McVeigh was still a teenager when the Provisional IRA killed him in 1975. It is believed he was buried in Bragan Bog, near Emyvale in Co Monaghan, but his body has never been found. He remains one of the Disappeared, those killed by the IRA during the Troubles and buried in secret. Some, like Jean McConville, have been found but others, like Mr McVeigh, remain unaccounted for.
That means that, for almost half a century, Mr McVeigh’s family has been searching for his remains. The Bragan Bog area was searched again this week by the Independent Commission for the Location of Victims’ Remains.
It is the sixth search of the area since 1999, but nothing has been found. Five decades of uncertainty and anguish stretch on, therefore, for one family. In the greater scheme of things, the hard-won peace in the North deserves to be celebrated as the success it is, but those like the McVeigh family, and the price they paid, should not be forgotten either.
