Emergency Derry rally for Gaza as Coveney says Israel behaving like ‘rogue state’

The group has asked people to attend the Diamond at 6pm on Wednesday to ‘Stop the Genocide’.

“We need to tell our governments that we are not going stop until they sanction Apartheid Israel,” the group said.

On Tuesday the Irish Minister for Enterprise Simon Coveney said Israel was ‘behaving like a rogue state’ and that it was not acceptable to ‘behave like a monster to defeat a monster’.

"We are witnessing Israel behaving like a like a rogue state, quite frankly," he said.

Mr. Coveney pointed out that Israel was ignoring the International Court of Justice which last month ordered it to take all measures within its power to prevent killing members of a group, causing serious mental harm, inflicting measures with the intent to destroy, in whole or in part a group, and of opposing measures to prevent births within the group in Gaza following an application by South Africa to protect ‘the Palestinian people under the Genocide Convention’.

"They're ignoring the ICJ. They seem now to even be ignoring their closest allies in countries like the US and the UK, who are clearly calling for restraint, looking for the basis of a ceasefire, wanting to work with Israel to bring an end to this savagery that is continuing in Gaza.

"I think those of us who contribute to international calls for a ceasefire need to intensify those calls now," he said.

Last week Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) intended moving into Rafah.

"They’ll soon go into Rafah, Hamas’s last bastion. They will do so, as they have done up to now, by providing the civilian population safe passage to safe zones, and they’ll do so in spite of Hamas’ evil attempts to stop the civilians from leaving at gunpoint,” he said.

On Monday the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk appealed for restraint in the face of an Israeli military incursion in Rafah, warning of the risk of further atrocity crimes in the Gaza war.

“Today, sadly, given the carnage wrought so far in Gaza it is wholly imaginable what would lie ahead in Rafah,” he said.

Mr. Türk also referred to Israel’s disregard for the ruling of the ICJ.

“Those who defy international law have been put on notice. Accountability must follow.

“The world must not allow this to happen. Those with influence must restrain rather than enable. There must be an immediate ceasefire. All remaining hostages must be released. And there must be renewed collective resolve to reach a political solution,” he said.

On Tuesday Mr. Coveney said Ireland has been trying to build consensus within the European Union (EU) to stop the ‘madness’ in Gaza.

"It is about Ireland behaving as a member of the international community in a way that maximises pressure and convinces people of what has been the Irish position for months now.

"And the truth is that the European position has effectively moved towards the Irish position over the last number of weeks. There are very few countries now not calling for a ceasefire,” he said.

War crimes must be stopped and international community must prevent genocide