Since the House last sat, provisional orders have been made by the International Court of Justice in the case taken by South Africa against Israel. This represents a significant step forward towards achieving justice for the people of Gaza. As we know, the court has now affirmed the gravity of the accusations against Israel and has called for preservation of human life for allowing humanitarian aid to pass and effectively for an end to the bombardment. All these measures are needed to stop war crimes and genocide in Gaza.

Last week, the Dáil passed a motion which binds the Government as a matter of urgency to strongly consider an intervention in the South African case once preliminary orders have been made. While that wording was weaker than the wording of the Sadaka draft of the cross-party motion that we in Labour had pushed for, nonetheless, now that preliminary orders have been made, will the Taoiseach set out exactly when the Government will make a decision on joining the case? I know there is to be a debate in the House tonight but it is a matter of huge urgency. We have seen more horrific deaths of civilians in Gaza over the weekend.

Ireland welcomes the decision by the International Court of Justice to order provisional measures in the South Africa versus Israel case. The court’s order is significant, that Israel must ensure that its military does not commit actions prohibited under the Genocide Convention and takes immediate and effective measures to enable basic services and humanitarian assistance in Gaza. The court’s order is legally binding and final and Israel must urgently implement all provisional measures. We have also called for humanitarian access and the protection of civilians since the start of the conflict. It is important to point out that the court did not made any findings of genocide against Israel but did say that South Africa has a relevant case that can be considered. We are now taking a rigorous analysis of this matter. Our understanding from our initial legal advice is that the term “join” is not the correct one to use. We can make an intervention, either a section 62 intervention or a section 63 intervention and these are different matters but we cannot actually do so until South Africa has submitted its main case, or memorial, and it has told us it will not be doing that for three to four months.

At the weekend, 11 ministers in the Israeli Government attended a conference calling for Israeli settlement in the Gaza strip. Detailed maps were displayed which showed the areas of the Gaza strip where settlements would be established. Among the ministers to attend was the national security minister, Ben-Gvir, and the finance minister, Smotrich. This will not come as any surprise. Both men are far-right extremists who support the creation and expansion of illegal settlements. Ben-Gvir was appointed national security minister despite having convictions for incitement to racism and supporting a terrorist organisation. Smotrich had previously stated there is no such thing as the Palestinian people, and called for Palestinian towns in the West Bank to be erased.

On Thursday, when I asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs what action Ireland was taking, the only thing he could point to was advocating for a ban on illegal Israeli settlements.

Does the Taoiseach think the travel ban on settlers should include members of the Israeli Government and will the Taoiseach advocate for that at EU level?

I thank the Deputy. To be clear, as a Government we will not accept any displacement of the Palestinian people from Gaza or any attempts to resettle Gaza or the permanent reoccupation of Gaza. What we are now working towards with our international partners is a ceasefire; one that can allow humanitarian aid in, that can allow the hostages to be released, which is crucial, that can allow the killing to stop and that, crucially, can allow us to talk about the day after in Gaza when Hamas is no longer in charge and when we can begin the reconstruction of that territory.

Will the Taoiseach answer the question?