Former minister denounces ‘the third Reich in Dublin’ during pro-Israel rally

Irish politicians have no right to lecture Israel about how it went about protecting its citizens from Hamas rockets, says Alan Shatter

Former minister for justice Alan Shatter addressing a rally in support of Israel at the gates to the Dáil before marching towards the Israeli embassy. Photograph: Alan Betson
Former minister for justice Alan Shatter addressing a rally in support of Israel at the gates to the Dáil before marching towards the Israeli embassy. Photograph: Alan Betson

The former minister for justice Alan Shatter said that we are seeing “the third Reich on the streets of Dublin” in an address to a rally in support of the state of Israel in Dublin on Sunday.

The former Fine Gael TD said Ireland had been a “bystander” in the 1930s and 1940s when the Nazis killed six million Jews.

Irish politicians had no right to lecture Israel about how it went about protecting its citizens from rockets that were being fired by Hamas from sites that included schools, hospitals and homes, he said.

“Hamas, as should be clear to every person by now who lives on this island, is nothing more than a fundamentalist Islamic death cult dedicated to murdering Jews.”

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People at a rally in Dublin in support of Israel. Photograph: Niall Carson/PA
People at a rally in Dublin in support of Israel. Photograph: Niall Carson/PA

Bar Clara Mendez McConnon spoke about how hard it was to live in Dublin as a Jewish mother with a young family when there was so much anti-Jewish feeling.

“Yesterday, we couldn’t even go into town because they were walking in the street, chanting for the destruction of our nation, but more than that they were going around with terrorist flags, with the PFLP [Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine] flags, organisations that have murdered hundreds of Jewish people around the world, they have attacked Jewish schools and embassies and airplanes and never stopped, and we have representatives in this very building [Leinster House] who will not condemn that publicly.”

Supporters of Palestine march to Israeli embassy in Dublin to protest against bombing of GazaOpens in new window ]

Marching from O’Connell Street to the Israeli embassy, Saturday's demonstration - with politicians from PBP and Sinn Fein - protested against Israel’s actions in Gaza.

The rally was organised by the Ireland Israel Alliance. Its founder, Jackie Goodall, said politicians and the media should have a “long hard think” about the people who trampled on flowers and cards outside the Israeli embassy during last Monday’s pro-Palestinian protest.

Irish Palestinian families to be separated at Gaza-Egypt borderOpens in new window ]

“The actions of those individuals last Monday night had nothing to do with Palestinian lives. Those actions were motivated by pure unadulterated hate. Jew Hatred. Let’s call it what it really is.”

Colm Keena

Colm Keena

Colm Keena is an Irish Times journalist. He was previously legal-affairs correspondent and public-affairs correspondent