Derry & Strabane Alderman claims October 7 attacks being 'hijacked'
UUP alderman Derek Hussey has accused others of “hijacking” the anniversary of the October 7 attacks.
At this month’s Governance and Strategic Planning Committee meeting, which took place on the second anniversary of the attacks, Sinn Féin councillor Emma McGinley said the attacks had been “used by the Israeli state to inflict yet another onslaught on the beleaguered people of Palestine”.
“Over the past two years we have had a genocide live streamed on our phones and on our TVs,” Councillor McGinley said.
“Israel claims to be acting in self-defence. Let me be clear: genocide is not self-defence, illegally detaining humanitarian activists is not self-defence, displacing an entire population is not self-defence, and carpet bombing civilians who have nowhere else to go is not self-defence.”
SDLP councillor Catherine McDaid said October 7 was used as “an excuse for Israel to step up the absolute terror that they’ve been putting on the Palestinian people,” while People Before Profit councillor Shaun Harkin said that, by labelling protests during October 7 as “un-British”, the British Prime Minister was “limit[ing] people’s right to protest”.
“This is absolutely disgraceful,” he said. “And despite what Starmer is saying, people across Ireland and across Britain will join massive protests today to mark the second anniversary of the genocide the Israeli state is committing in Gaza.”
In response, Alderman Hussey said his thoughts and prayers were with those impacted on October 7.
“The nearly 1,200 who were murdered, massacred, the 251 hostages who were taken back into Gaza by a terrorist organization, Hamas, and I think it’s highly inappropriate to actually hijack this day, on the other side of the coin.
“This is not a one-sided argument, all we’ve heard today is one-sided condemnation,” he said.
“There should be condemnation going both ways, and I accept there have been excesses that will be examined.
“I also have to comment on this total concentration on Hamas and Gaza and all of the rest of it.
“There’s no mention of Sudan, for example, where two million children, according to reports, are starving.
“There’s a civil war going on there, that’s alright, it’s ‘our friends, our terrorist friends’ in Gaza and Hezbollah and others that are more important than other situations."