The bishops of Ireland on Thursday called on the Irish Government to recognize the “state of Palestine” at their summer conference.
The bishops discussed the humanitarian crisis that exists “due to violence between Israel and Palestine,” according to a statement released following their meeting.
The meeting called for an “end to violence on all sides and for a just and lasting peace between the two States”, which should be based on “respect for international humanitarian and human rights law, accountability for war crimes, an end to the illegal occupation of Palestinian territories and for an end to the blockade of Gaza,” the statement read.
The bishops also commended the passing of a motion in Government which condemned “Israel’s ‘de facto annexation’ of Palestinian territory” as a violation of “the fundamental principles of international law”.
In 2014, Irish lawmakers approved a non-binding symbolic motion urging their government to recognize “Palestine” as a state.
In 2018, Irish Foreign Minister Simon Coveney said his country may recognize a Palestinian state if peace talks with Israel aimed at producing a two-state solution in the region continue to stagnate.
Palestinian Arab officials have been pressuring countries to officially recognize “Palestine”, in a move meant to bypass direct peace talks with Israel.
While several European countries have recognized “Palestine” in recent years, those moves were symbolic ones that have little, if any, actual diplomatic effect.