Irish Citizens Requested In Good Faith To Not To Travel Israel And Lebanon

Irish citizens

Irish citizens are requested by the government not to travel to Israel and Lebanon. The request has been made with the growing tension between the two countries in mind. 

In two different social media posts on X, Taoiseach Simon Harris, Tanaiste, and Minister for Foreign Affairs Micheal Martin urged Irish citizens to avoid travelling to both states as the Department of Foreign Affairs thinks “it is not safe”. 

(Also read: Iran Is Up For A Revenge For Hamas Leader Ismail Haniyeh Killing In Tehran)

The same applied to travelling to Palestine. It was corroborated by a message that Mr Harris posted on X today. The post cited, “Our travel advice for Israel has changed due to growing instability in the region. The Government is now advising Irish citizens not to travel to Israel. The same advice applied to Lebanon and Palestine”. 

Mr Martin further confirmed the message by informing the citizens that they should take advantage of other options if they ever want to leave. However, Irish citizens are urged not to travel in two particular regions for their own safety. 

It is prioritised for the fact the safety and security of Irish citizens remains the sole responsibility of the Irish government. For consultations and advice, DFA officials and staff in Dublin are present for all-time support. 

The website of the Department of Foreign Affairs also mentioned in clear words that Irish people should restrain themselves from travelling to Israel as well as Palestine. 

Further, they are requesting those citizens, who are already present in Israel Or Palestine, that they should register themselves on the platform of the Department’s registration. 

On the department website, there is a registration link for the said purpose. The same strong advice stretches to those who are planning to travel even to the borders with Lebanon. 

Reason for stopping Irish citizens to travel

The reason for such detainment is that the border area with Lebanon is declared a “closed military zone” by the Israeli military. Consequently, there is a high risk for “intense escalation” of violence. 

Yesterday, Lieutenant Colonel Tom Fox, the commander in charge of Irish peacekeepers in South Lebanon confirmed that the situation in the area has become more “tense and volatile”. He asserted that the intensification of conflict between Israel and Hezbollah is unavoidable. 

Therefore, Irish peacekeepers need to be more cautious. In South Lebanon, currently, there are 332 Irish peacekeepers. They are living at Camp Shamrock as well as an Irish outpost close to the blue line. It is considered as a “marked” border between Israel and Lebanon. 

Extra caution is advised for another 100 Irish private citizens who are in the knowledge of the Irish government to be residing in Lebanon. Dozens more are believed to be present in Israel and Palestine, both. 

The situation has gotten worse since Ismail Haniyeh, the leader of Hamas, was killed last week in Tehran, Iran. The circumstances were already declared “volatile” after the 7 October attack by Hamas on Israel. As a result, military action from Israel was initiated in Palestine. 

The foreign ministry spokesperson of Iran, Nasser Kanaani, stated that Iran does not support an upturn in the inflaming political conflicts between the regions. It does, however, advocate punishing the “aggressors” in order to stop such unrest. 

He added that Iran only wants political equilibrium in the territory. He believed that it would only be possible if the assailants were punished with the creation of deterrence “against the adventurism of the Zionist regime (Israel)”. He knows that a reaction from Tehran would otherwise be inevitable. 

With that, the high likelihood of a wider regional war would be on the rise. The subsequent circumstances would become completely unpredictable, he claimed.

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