Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 7 July 2026
98. Deputy Eoin Ó Broin asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade whether her Department will, as Belgium has, cease offering local consular services to dual-citizens illegally occupying land in the Occupied Palestinian territory; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [51049/26]
Amharc ar fhreagraMy Department is committed to providing high quality, timely and empathetic consular assistance to Irish citizens abroad. A guiding principle of our consular assistance work is that we offer support to citizens in distress in a non-judgmental, non-discriminatory way. Consular facilities are available to all Irish citizens who live or travel abroad and who seek such assistance from the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade or any of our missions abroad.
The Vienna Convention on Consular Relations (1963) defines the parameters of consular assistance in international law. This is reflected in turn in the Department’s Consular Assistance Charter, which sets out in a clear and accessible manner the type of assistance citizens can expect to receive should they require assistance. There are currently no plans to review our approach to the provision of consular assistance to dual nationals.
More broadly, Ireland is deeply concerned by the sharply deteriorating situation in the West Bank, in particular the massive expansion of settlements and rampant and escalating settler violence, which continues in an atmosphere of impunity. Israeli actions consistently contravene international law and are part of an established pattern to create a new status quo in Palestine. Ireland is continuing to press for appropriate action in response to egregious Israeli breaches of human rights and democratic principles, including at the EU level in close consultation with other Member States.
In May, the Government approved and published the text of the Israeli Settlements in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (Prohibition of Importation of Goods) Bill. The Bill fulfils the commitment set out in the Programme for Government to progress legislation to prohibit the import of goods from Israeli settlements in the occupied Palestinian territory. The Bill completed Committee Stage in the Dáil on 25 June.
