From the plough to the stars

Over the past two years, Ireland has gained a reputation as the ‘most pro- Palestine country in Europe’ following mass mobilisations against the genocide in Gaza since the 7 October 2023 uprising. This reputation is not unearned, and in fact rests on a much longer history of solidarity, especially among Republican communities in the North, who have long seen (and made) allies in the Palestinian anti- colonial struggle. However, the fierceness of this same support in the South has taken some politicians by surprise, and even centre- right Government parties Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil have been vocally critical of Israel, making Ireland an outlier in Europe. That said, Ireland's greatest complicity in the US- Israeli project is in its trade links, and despite the rhetoric from the ruling coalition, there has been zero real threat of sanctions.

In November 2024, a report from The Ditch reveals that the US Ambassador had written directly to the Tánaiste (deputy Prime Minister) warning of ‘consequences’ if Ireland enacted the Occupied Territories Bill (OTB) (The Ditch Editors 2024). The proposed law, first brought forward in 2018, would ban and criminalise trade with companies operating in or from illegal settlements in occupied territories (as determined under international law) – in particular, Israeli settlements in Israeli- occupied Palestinian territories. Despite widespread popularity, and unanimous support across opposition parties, the Bill is once again ‘sent for review’ following the Ambassador's intervention. In her email, the Ambassador cited more than 1,000 US companies located in Ireland that would be adversely affected by the passing of the OTB. Though it may not seem significant, and it only demonstrates what many know to be the case: that this is an overt example of US imperialism working through Ireland.