WEST Belfast MLA Gerry Carroll has called on Irish politicians to show solidarity with the Palestinian people by refusing to attend the annual St Patrick’s Day celebrations in Washington this March.
Traditionally the Taoiseach meets the US President on St Patrick's Day in the White House and presents the President with a bowl of shamrock. Over the years the President has also attended a special St Patrick's Day luncheon attended by prominent members of the Irish-American community as well as politicians from various political parties in Ireland.
Now, People Before Profit MLA Carroll is calling on Irish parties to publicly boycott the St Patrick’s Day celebrations at The White House "to show how isolated the US is in its support for Israel" in their war in Gaza.
“Israel could not continue its murderous campaign of collective punishment of the people of Gaza without the bombs, weaponry and political support of Joe Biden and his administration," he said.
“We are now nearly three months into Israel's genocidal assault on Palestine. Tens of thousands of Palestinians have been killed, many of them children. Many more people have been injured, while hundreds of thousands have been displaced from their homes.
“It would be shameful if Irish politicians were to wine and dine with the war hawks in Washington in this context. Irish Government parties, including Fianna Fáil, Fine Gael, and the Greens, should be nowhere near the White House as this slaughter continues, nor should parties like Sinn Féin and the SDLP," he added.
In April last year President Joe Biden arrived in Ireland for a four day visit where he visited his ancestral homes in counties Louth and Mayo, met President Michael D Higgins and spoke at Ulster University in Belfast and addressed the Houses of the Oireachtas in Dublin.
