Israel’s Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar announced that the Jewish nation will shut down its embassy in Dublin, a week after Ireland decided to support a petition at the International Court of Justice accusing Israel of genocideread more

Israel announced on Sunday that it will be closing its embassy in Dublin after Ireland extended support to a petition at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) accusing Israel of committing genocide in Gaza. Israel’s Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar confirmed the move. The Israeli diplomat maintained that the decision to shut down the embassy was prompted by the Irish government’s “extreme anti-Israeli policies”, noting its decision to join the ICJ petition last week.

Shortly after the confirmation, Ireland’s Taoiseach Simon Harris condemned Israel’s decision. “This is a deeply regrettable decision from the Netanyahu government. I utterly reject the assertion that Ireland is anti-Israel. Ireland is pro-peace, pro-human rights and pro-international law,” he wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter. “Ireland wants a two-state solution and for Israel and Palestine to live in peace and security. Ireland will always speak up for human rights and international law. Nothing will distract from that,” he added.

Ireland wants a two state solution and for Israel and Palestine to live in peace and security. Ireland will always speak up for human rights and international law. Nothing will distract from that.

— Simon Harris TD (@SimonHarrisTD) December 15, 2024

Interestingly, Israel did not announce shutting down embassies in other nations that joined the petition, like Mexico, Egypt and Spain. The announcement came a day after the death toll of Palestinians in Gaza crossed the 45,000 mark. Dozens of deaths were reported in Israeli strikes on the coastal enclave on Sunday.

Israel accuses Ireland of crossing ‘red line’

While confirming the news Sa’ar mentioned that Israel recalled its ambassador to Ireland after the country recognised the state of Palestine. “It should be noted that in the past, Israel’s ambassador to Dublin was recalled following Ireland’s unilateral decision to recognise a ‘Palestinian state’.”

“The antisemitic actions and rhetoric that Ireland is taking against Israel are based on delegitimisation and demonisation of the Jewish state and on double standards,” he added. The Israeli foreign minister claimed that Ireland crossed all the “red lines” after it extended support for South Africa’s legal action against Tel Aviv, accusing the Jewish nation of genocide.

“Ireland has crossed all red lines in its relationship with Israel. Israel will invest its resources in promoting bilateral relations with the countries of the world according to priorities that are also derived from the attitude of the various countries towards it,” he averred.

“There are countries that are interested in strengthening their ties with Israel and do not yet have an Israeli embassy,” Sa’ar continued, adding that Israel planned to open a new embassy in Moldova, which is seen as being more friendly to Israel.

Ireland stance on Palestine

It is pertinent to note that the relations between the two nations have long been strained due to Ireland’s stance on the Palestine question. In November, Harris announced that the country would detain Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu if he travelled to Ireland after the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued arrest warrants against him and the country’s then-defence minister Yoav Gallant.

On November 21, ICC issued warrants against the two, citing grounds that Netanyahu and Gallant had committed war crimes of “starvation and crimes against humanity such as murder and persecution” in Gaza. Israel’s decision to shut down the Dublin embassy came weeks after Micheál Martin, the Tánaiste (Ireland’s second most senior elected official) and minister for foreign affairs, said that he had secured government approval for Ireland to intervene in South Africa’s ICJ case against Israel under the genocide convention.

“There has been a collective punishment of the Palestinian people through the intent and impact of military actions of Israel in Gaza, leaving 44,000 dead and millions of civilians displaced,” Martin averred. “By legally intervening in South Africa’s case, Ireland will be asking the ICJ to broaden its interpretation of what constitutes the commission of genocide by a state,” he added. The Irish leader called for the protection of civilian lives in Gaza as Israel continued to pound the strip.

With inputs from agencies.