The death toll in Gaza has now risen to 33,500 people, according to the ministry of health there. That means that, appallingly, about 1,500 more people have died since the Tánaiste and I were last here for Leaders’ Questions before Easter. The devastation from the ongoing bombardment and besiegement of Gaza is unthinkable, and children are dying in such numbers. Many children are suffering from malnutrition and dehydration in Gaza. This is not due to natural disasters or drought; their hunger is man-made. As we know, the Israeli Government is shamefully using famine as a weapon of war against a civilian population already on its knees. This is just one of the war crimes in the collective punishment of innocent Gazans that Israel has been carrying out since the awful Hamas attack on 7 October.

The Israeli Government is stopping aid from entering the besieged Gaza Strip, and we have seen the killing of aid workers who are on the ground trying to help a desperate population. We all know that this is a catastrophic situation. Without a ceasefire, there can be no end to the catastrophe and the devastation, let alone progress towards a peaceful two-state solution.

On Tuesday, the Tánaiste indicated to the House that he will bring a formal proposal on recognition of the state of Palestine. That is a welcome move. I welcomed it on Tuesday, and I do so again. It is the most recent in what we acknowledge is a series of positive moves by Cabinet. We need to see recognition of Palestinian statehood. We need to defend humanitarian law in the International Court of Justice and other international courts. We must ensure that organisations like UNRWA can continue their important work in Gaza and we must exhaust every possible means of bringing the bloodshed to an end. We all agree on that.

I call on the Tánaiste to move the position of Cabinet on another related issue. Will the Government commit to passing the occupied territories Bill in order that we can see the imposition of meaningful trade sanctions on the brutal Netanyahu regime? I remind the House that the occupied territories Bill was introduced for a Second Stage debate here by Fianna Fáil TDs. The Israeli Government’s contempt for international law requires countries like ours take stronger actions to compel compliance, actions like passage of trade sanction Bills such as the occupied territories Bill.

We understand that Government opposition to the passage of the Bill is apparently based on legal advice from the Attorney General's office. What is that advice, and why has it not changed since the outset of the brutal war? Article 24 of the EU regulation on imports from non-member states allows for bans on the importation of goods on grounds of public morality, public policy, or the protection of health and life of humans. That same exception applies under Article 36 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union regarding goods in circulation within the EU. Some 35,000 people are dead and war crimes are being committed in plain view. I cannot see how a ban on the importation of goods does not fall under these grounds. We are seeing civilians, journalists, aid workers and children being killed in their thousands - actions clearly repugnant to public morality and protection of life. Alongside recognition of the state of Palestine, will the Tánaiste commit to facilitating the passage of the occupied territories Bill? All of us across the Opposition will work with the Government to see it passed.

I thank the Deputy for raising the issue. I agree with her wholeheartedly in that it is absolutely imperative and necessary that this war ends, that Israel stop its bombardment of Gaza and that there be an immediate ceasefire. We have appealed to the Israeli Government and to Hamas to facilitate a ceasefire. There have been intensive negotiations now for quite some time. What is happening to the civilian population of Gaza is an outrage, and what is happening to the children of Gaza in particular is absolutely beyond human comprehension.

The important issues of starvation and famine - which is man-made, as the Deputy has said - have exercised us considerably and have influenced our approach to a legal intervention in respect of the case before the International Court of Justice. Although the substantive memorial may not be filed by South Africa for quite some time, our legal team is working around the area of humanitarian deprivation and looking at how the definition of "genocide", in the context of the genocide convention, should be broadened. On our side, there is very serious legal work going on in that respect, and I just wanted to say that to the Deputy.

On recognition, I had a very good and lengthy conversation yesterday with the Spanish foreign minister, Mr. Albares, in respect of this issue, and I will have further discussions today with my Norwegian and Slovenian counterparts and others. We will be in a position, with others, to formally recognise the state of Palestine.

I will come back to the House following the conclusion of the discussions currently under way between like-minded member states of the EU and other countries that may also wish to take the opportunity, collectively, to do this, which I think would be impactful.

On the humanitarian side, our efforts have been effective in respect of support of UNRWA. The European Commission has released funding to UNRWA. We made very strong representations in that regard. Other countries have reversed their pauses and have started to fund UNRWA again. Most people we meet now accept the reality that without UNRWA there cannot be any widespread efforts to deal with the humanitarian situation and also the reconstruction of Gaza. The involvement of UNRWA will be vital to the latter.

On the Control of Economic Activity (Occupied Territories) Bill 2018, we raised at European Union level the EU-Israel association agreement and the degree to which the human rights clauses of that agreement have been fulfilled. Ireland and Spain together have sought a review from the European Commission in that regard. The legal advice we have received concerning the Bill is in relation to the European Union being the competent authority in respect of trade. Earlier this week, the Minister for Finance made an announcement in respect of divestment-----

The time is up.

-----in terms of the National Treasury Management Agency divestment from certain investments in the occupied Palestinian territory. He has been advised that the agency has decided to divest from certain Ireland Strategic Investment Fund global portfolios relating to companies undertaking-----

I thank the Tánaiste. The time is up. We are way over time.

-----certain activities in the occupied Palestinian territory. We continue to do what we can in relation to this aspect.

I accept that there is often a need for countries to act in concert. Indeed, I am glad the Government is working in concert with South Africa. I very much welcome the fact that the former Taoiseach joined with Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez of Spain in requesting the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, to review EU trade in light of this horrendous war. At a gathering of leaders of socialist parties at the weekend, I raised the need for multilateral action across the EU.

The situation in Gaza continues to worsen. I think we are all very conscious of this. While we very much welcomed the announcement this week of some divestments by the NTMA, nonetheless there is much more we can do, even if Ireland has to move without all the other European states. In 2022, Ireland was Israel's fourth largest export customer. UN rapporteur Francesca Albanese has said that countries like Ireland need to match words with deeds when it comes to sanctions against Israel. What message does it send to Netanyahu when it seems that he still has to face any real economic consequences for the horrendous actions of his regime in Gaza? The case for the Control of Economic Activity (Occupied Territories) Bill 2018 and for more meaningful trade sanctions is becoming unanswerable. We need to move on this fact and bring other EU member states with us.

I thank the Deputy.

I again ask the Tánaiste to act on this.

Again, the EU is the competent authority in respect of trade. It conducts trade agreements with countries all over the world, including Israel. No boycott of Israel that I am aware of has been proposed by anybody across the European Union or by any government anywhere. Regarding the Control of Economic Activity (Occupied Territories) Bill 2018, the European Union has various legislation in terms of labelling and so forth. The area of trade competency presents a challenge in the context of the Bill.

I have written to Francesca Albanese. I take issue with what was said. Some of our diplomats met her recently and she seemed unaware of certain measures we had already taken in respect of Gaza. We regretted the fact that she sought no meeting with us. The Deputy will agree that is normal for UN rapporteurs to meet with officials of Departments. It would have been the norm that she would have met with us last October. We would have been very enthusiastic about Ireland's position on Palestine, but, on this occasion, for one reason or another, no meeting was sought with me or officials in my Department during that most recent visit.

I thank the Tánaiste.

We will continue to engage with the UN. As the Deputy will be aware, we had Philippe Lazzarini here last week and so, people who are appreciative of the stance Ireland has taken.

I thank the Tánaiste.