Ireland was the last country in the European Union to host an Israeli embassy. It is now, nearly 30 years later, the first to have one closed down. Ireland – self-appointed standard-bearer of the peaceniks – joins Iraq, Somalia, North Korea et al in having no Israeli diplomatic representation. Israel had repeatedly criticised Ireland for its reflexively anti-Israel disposition. When the Irish government announced on 11 December it would intervene in calling for the International Court of Justice to expand its definition of genocide (to incorporate Israeli action in the Gaza War), the Rubicon was crossed.
Israel’s foreign minister Gideon Sa’ar explained that “Ireland’s extreme anti-Israel policy” had become overwhelming, that the “anti-Semitic actions and rhetoric that Ireland is taking against Israel are based on delegitimisation and demonisation of the Jewish state and on double standards”. He is right about at least one thing: Ireland’s stance on Israel is among the most hostile in Europe. For the bien pensant middle classes of Dublin’s universities, it is almost a social requirement. In the leaders debate ahead of the recent election all candidates agreed that Ireland must boycott Israel. Parliament is treated to frequent invectives on the topic. Cork County Council helpfully banned Benjamin Netanyahu from entering the city, even before the International Criminal Court issued his arrest warrant in November.
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