Irish PM tells UN international community has 'failed Palestine'

Irish Taoiseach Micheal Martin told the UN General Assembly on Thursday that the international community has failed the Palestinian people, warning that continued violence and settlement expansion are undermining prospects for a lasting peace in the occupied territories.

'We have failed Palestine'

"We, the collective international community, have failed Palestine," Martin said, referring to the continuing suffering of civilians in Gaza and the occupied West Bank. He warned that the full truth of events in Gaza will eventually shame the world once evidence is gathered and testimonies heard. "When the full truth of what has happened, what is still happening in Gaza is finally known, when the evidence is gathered, when the testimonies are heard, when the true horrors are finally and fully revealed, it will shame the world. Nobody will be able to say that we did not know," he said.

'Deliberate attempt' to block two-state solution

The Irish premier accused Israeli leaders of deliberately attempting to make a two-state solution impossible. "What we are witnessing on the ground is a deliberate attempt by some to make the prospect of a two-state solution impossible. This is not some mad conspiracy theory. It is the stated intent of the prime minister of Israel (Benjamin Netanyahu)," Martin said. He cited Netanyahu's opposition to Palestinian statehood and Israeli approval of development in the E1 area of the occupied West Bank.

ICC and international law

Martin noted that the first phase of the Gaza peace plan agreed last October had not fundamentally changed conditions on the ground, citing continued attacks and restrictions on humanitarian assistance. He reaffirmed Ireland's support for the International Criminal Court, stating there could be "no impunity for war crimes." He said the international legal order was under "tremendous strain," adding: "The denial of the fundamental human rights of millions of people around the world remains one of the defining challenges of our time."