Republic of Ireland accused of 'sickening hypocrisy' after rubbishing Israel's calls to take in displaced refugees from Palestine

The comments came after the Irish deputy prime minister dismissed Israel’s demand for countries that had vociferously backed Palestine and condemned Israeli forces in the recent conflict to back up their words by taking in refugees.

Israel’s Defence Minister, Israel Katz, explicitly named the Republic of Ireland, Spain and Norway as countries he thought should be “legally obliged” to take in Palestinians, adding: “Their hypocrisy will be exposed if they refuse.”

The idea was rubbished by Tanaiste Simon Harris, who described the idea of accepting large numbers of displaced Palestinians as “a distraction”.

But for the TUV, the move is simply “the natural follow-through of the Irish Republic’s decision to recognise a Palestinian state”.

Said vice-chairman Allister Kyle: “Having repeatedly defamed the world’s only Jewish state, it is both logical and reasonable to expect that the Republic would accept Palestinians.

“Dublin’s hypocrisy is sickening. They have spent months making the most outrageous statements about the treatment of Palestinians. One would have thought that if they really believed their situation was that bad, they would be positively keen to accept them, yet these reasonable comments have been dismissed.

“The truth is that, particularly following President Higgins’s abuse of a Holocaust memorial event to attack Israeli policy, no one takes anything Dublin says about the situation in the Middle East seriously. Their anti-Israel bias is obvious.”

Israel Katz’s comments came as he ordered the Israeli army to put together a plan allowing for the "voluntary departure" of Palestinians from Gaza.

The instruction followed US President Donald Trump's announcement that the United States plans to take over Gaza, resettle Palestinians living there, and transform the territory into the "Riviera of the Middle East".

Irish and Spanish leaders both rejected the idea that they should take in displaced Palestinians, with the Tanaiste’s office telling RTE that priorities should be securing the ceasefire in the region, delivering humanitarian aid, getting hostages home and finding a two-state solution to the conflict.

"The objective must be that the people of Palestine return safely to their home,” added a spokesperson. “Any comments to the contrary are unhelpful and a source of distraction.”