Cathaoirleach, Councillor Declan Bree, welcomed the Palestinian Ambassador to Ireland, Her Excellency Ambassador Jilan Wahba Abdalmajid, to County Hall on Thursday 23rd January.
Cathaoirleach welcomes Palestinian Ambassador to County Hall
Cathaoirleach Cllr Declan Bree said it was a profound honour and privilege to welcome Her Excellency Ambassador Jilan Wahba Abdalmajid to County Hall and the visit marked a significant milestone in the already strong relationship between Ireland and the State of Palestine.
“Ireland’s longstanding support for the Palestinian cause has been unwavering. As early as 1980, we were the first European Union member state to endorse the establishment of a Palestinian state. This principled stance has guided our foreign policy ever since, and our commitment has only deepened over the decades.
“1999 marked the first occasion an Irish Taoiseach visited Gaza, where he met with Palestinian leaders including Yasser Arafat. This was followed two years later by Ireland’s Minister for Foreign Affairs visiting Gaza, further solidifying Ireland’s engagement with the Palestinian people and their leadership.
“In the year 2000, Ireland took a crucial step by opening a representative office in Ramallah, demonstrating our country’s dedication to strengthening ties with the Palestinian people. Today, we witness the culmination of these efforts as we welcome Ambassador Abdalmajid as the Republic of Ireland’s first full ambassador from Palestine.
“The decision made last May to recognise the Palestinian state reflects Ireland’s enduring support for the Palestinian people and their struggle for self-determination and statehood. “I and all of my colleagues on Sligo County Council are proud to witness the evolution of Palestine’s representation in Ireland, from a mission to a resident embassy. Dr. Abdalmajid, who has played a pivotal role as the head of the Palestinian mission, will now carry out her duties as the ambassador, further strengthening the bonds between our countries.
Front Row (L-R): First Counsellor, Mr. Baker Hijazi, Deputy Head of Mission; Her Excellency Ambassador Jilan Wahba Abdalmajid; Cathaoirleach Cllr Declan Bree, Cllr Nessa Cosgrove; Back Row (L-R): Cllr Dónal Gilroy; Cllr Thomas Healy; Cllr Arthur Gibbons; Cllr Gino O'Boyle; Cllr Fergal Nealon
“This progress is not one-sided. I am pleased that Ireland is reciprocating by upgrading our presence in Ramallah from a representative office to a full embassy. This reciprocal action underscores the mutual respect and partnership between our nations.
“Today, we especially welcome the temporary ceasefire in Gaza which brings a glimmer of hope after a prolonged and brutal offensive by the Israeli military. While this temporary pause is a vital step, it comes far too late for the almost 50,000 Palestinians who have been killed by Israeli forces in Gaza, and certainly falls short of putting a permanent end to Palestinian suffering.
“In addition it must be pointed out that the situation in the West Bank has deteriorated in parallel to the war in Gaza at a disastrous pace and the annexation of Palestinian land continues unabated. Restrictions on freedom of movement, settler violence, and the forcible displacement of entire communities have escalated as never before under the cover of war. “While we mourn the lives of all those Palestinian and Israeli civilians who have died we must remain focused on a future where every life is precious and all people live in freedom and safety.
“For more than three quarters of a century, the Israeli state has held the Palestinian people in a state of dispossession and subjugation, under a brutal settler-colonial apartheid regime. It has forced millions of Palestinians into refugeehood and condemned them to live in enforced exile. It has stolen their lands, their resources, and their livelihoods.
“It has imprisoned more than 800,000 people since 1967. It has illegally annexed East Jerusalem and for more than fifty years has used its military might to enforce its rule in the West Bank and Gaza. For almost two decades it imposed a cruel and barbaric blockade on the 2.3 million Palestinians in Gaza, where residents were held in an open-air prison with polluted water and limited electricity, denied their freedom, their healthcare, and their most basic rights, and regularly subjected to massive military assaults.
“And for the last year and a quarter Gaza has known only death, destruction and displacement. The levels of trauma as a result of the Israeli campaign of genocide are beyond human comprehension.
“Over the past fifteen months Palestinian mothers and fathers have been bidding tearful farewells to their beloved children, broken hearted with the weight of unspeakable loss. Forced to say goodbye to loved ones taken too soon, they endure the anguish of countless farewells, their resilience tested beyond measure. “Yet, through it all, the spirit of resistance has endured. Today Palestinian people in Gaza and the West Bank remain proud, steadfast in their belief that one day they will seize the freedom they have long been denied.
“In this context the temporary ceasefire must be seen not as an end but as a stepping stone towards a comprehensive and lasting peace.
“It is important that the hundreds of thousands of Irish people who have been actively involved in the Palestine solidarity campaign remain active. Irish people have a long and proud history of standing with the Palestinian people and today we join with the international community in seeking a full and swift investigation by the International Criminal Court into Israeli war crimes and crimes against humanity, including the crimes of genocide and apartheid.
“I am proud of the fact that so many people in Sligo have, and continue to display their support for the Palestinian cause.
“I am also proud that the elected representatives, of all political persuasions, on Sligo County Council have consistently shown support for the people of Palestine. “In this context it is important that the incoming government enacts Occupied Territories legislation that will ensure that Ireland will abstain from entering into economic or trade dealings and will prevent trade or investment relations with Israel in respect of the occupied territories and the illegal settlements.
“The International Court of Justice (ICJ) has declared that not only is the Israeli occupation illegal, and the settlements illegal, but that there is a legal “obligation” on all states not to trade with them. Ireland therefore is required to adhere to that legal obligation.
“We must also remain committed to using our voice and influence in international forums—from the EU to the UN. Palestinian civil society has been clear in its demands for a just resolution based on international law; an end to the occupation, full rights for Palestinian citizens in Israel, and the implementation of the Right of Return for Palestinian refugees.
“We stand with the Palestinian people in their struggle for their legitimate rights, including the right to self-determination and the establishment of a free, independent and sovereign state of Palestine with Jerusalem as its capital.
“Ambassador Abdalmajid, your visit here today symbolises the strength and resilience of the bonds between our nations. We are honoured by your leadership and look forward to the positive impact you will have on our shared journey towards a future of mutual understanding, cooperation, and prosperity. “Together, let us embrace this historic moment and look forward to a brighter tomorrow, where the dreams and aspirations of the Palestinian people are realised, and where peace, justice, and progress prevail.”
Her Excellency Ambassador Jilan Wahba Abdalmajid spoke at the reception saying:
“Fifteen months of Israel’s genocidal war on the Palestinian people may reach an end. A pause, was agreed. Fifteen months as the world continues to look on, failing to stop the Israeli onslaught, we have entered the 16th month of this unbridled savagery against a defenseless civilian population under the mercy of this illegal occupation and apartheid regime. The devastation wrought by Israel on the Gaza Strip is unprecedented and an utter disgrace to the international legal order and any notion of the existence of a collective humanity. The failure to act and hold Israel accountable over its crimes has allowed the Israeli occupying forces (IOF) to continue committing daily massacres for the past 15 months.
“The toll is now estimated at 155,000 Palestinians casualties since October 2023 - 45,936 Palestinians have been killed and 109,274 have been injured, an estimated 10,000 under the rubble, and more than 1.9 million have been displaced to a worse hell on earth in Gaza .
“Women and children continue to represent the majority of victims in this shocking casualty toll. Attacks by IDF and extremist settlers in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, also continue to claim lives, including of children, the death toll surpassing 840 Palestinians, in addition to the terror and illegal measures that have forcibly displaced over 4,250 civilians in just the past year. In the past few days, the Israeli occupation forces have intensified collective punishment and restrictions on the Palestinian people throughout the occupied West Bank.
“This includes sealing off of all entrances to Palestinian governorates, cities, towns, and refugee camps using iron gates, earth mounds, and military checkpoint, the total number of illegal barriers has reached approximately 898, including 16 newly installed iron gates in recent days.
“These measures have fragmented the West Bank, severed connections between its areas, paralyzed Palestinian mobility, and left thousands of families stranded for hours at checkpoints of humiliation and suffering in what constitutes the most egregious form of Israeli apartheid. The next day of the Gaza war is not to revive and reconstruct Gaza…….The next day of Gaza war is another brutality and intensive colonization and annexation in the west bank. Yes, a ceasefire deal in Gaza was agreed, and we hope it will be sustained, but our path to end this colonization and free Palestine is not paved. Our struggle for freedom will continue. You Irish people inspired us.
“There can be no more delays in the face of Israel’s flagrant impunity and ongoing threats to carry on with its grave breaches of international law and systematic human rights violations against our people It is long past time for sanctions and for independent, transparent, international investigations to ensure full accountability, including full reparations, for all the war crimes, crimes against humanity and acts of genocide perpetrated by Israel against our people and for all the loss, suffering and trauma they have endured.
“It is long past time for the Palestinian people to finally be liberated from this illegal, abhorrent, colonial occupation and apartheid regime and to finally realize their inalienable rights to return and to self-determination and the independence of the State of Palestine with East Jerusalem as its capital, in accordance with international law and in implementation of the relevant UN resolutions. This is the only path to peace and security for Palestinians, Israelis and for our region.”
The ambassador said Sligo was a majestic place steeped in folklore.
"it's no surprise that it inspired one of the world's greatest poets, WB Yeats. This county was also significant in Ireland's struggle for independence. The people here across the last century and beyond, played an important role in shaping this independent and now peaceful country. You are an inspiration to the people of Palestine.”