The Palestinian people have long suffered under an illegal occupation, apartheid, annexation and Israeli onslaught. They have been provided with no real hope for the future. Israel's security-only policy has not provided security for anybody. At this point in time, Gaza, long an open prison, is suffering carpet-bombing and forced displacement, and there is not enough water, energy or fuel. They have all been cut off by Israel.

We were all shocked and appalled at the actions of Hamas but the problem is that what we have is collective punishment being provided to the Palestinians on the basis of anger and possibly worse. At an international level, the only calls can be for a ceasefire now and for the necessary opening in regard to those necessary resources to save Palestinian lives.

What interactions has the Irish Government had at international level with regard to delivering this and what interactions will it have, particularly at European Union level, and the disgraceful green lighting of Israeli actions by Ursula von der Leyen?

The Government is calling for a humanitarian ceasefire. We believe such a ceasefire must be respected by all sides: Hamas, Islamic Jihad and the Israeli Defense Forces. We are calling for the creation of humanitarian corridors so that we can get water, supplies, fuel and medicines into Gaza and get refugees and foreign passport holders out. I called for that at a meeting of the European Council yesterday. We are also engaging at UN level and the Tánaiste has had a series of phone calls with other countries, including Jordan, Iran and others, to push that case.