President Higgins calls for 'immediate ceasefire' in Gaza

President Higgins said it is vital that there is an urgent “positive conclusion” to peace talks in order to resolve the humanitarian crisis in Gaza.

The current figure for UN Relief Work Agency (UNRWA) staff deaths in Gaza is 152, Mr Ryan told Mr Higgins.

An attack on the densely packed Rafah crossing is being reported while ceasefire talks are at a crucial stage - all the more reason for urgency, Mr Higgins said.

“Listening to the update which Dr Ryan provided, it is clear that it is more vital than ever that the space for diplomacy be forefronted and supported as steps that are necessary for saving life and helping discussions towards peace, and that those negotiations on which all sides are engaging are brought to an early and positive conclusion” he said.

“The consensus of all those interested in an enduring peace is holding and widening on the principle that an immediate ceasefire is necessary, which will offer the best prospect for the achievement of the release of all hostages and allow the essential humanitarian supports access to the population which so desperately needs them."

The President's statement said that the WHO’s latest Emergency Situation Update which was published this week, shows that 70% of those killed in Gaza to date are women and children.

“UNICEF in particular have highlighted that the violence has left 17,000 children without parents. The WHO have further stressed that 75% of the population of Gaza have been displaced. The main concerns, include the dismantling of the health service in Gaza, as well as food insecurity which has left half a million people facing catastrophic hunger and starvation, and the ongoing outbreaks of infectious diseases.

“Given all of these facts, any further extension of the bombing campaign into what is a densely populated area to which so many people have fled would leave any respect for humanitarian law in tatters," President  Higgins said.

Watching the situation unfold “in near silence is a suggestion that removes all morality from any stated position of public concern for the most basic of human rights", he added.

He said it is a “global crisis that offers a terrible nadir of human concern and must be opposed in order to prevent it being invoked in future conflicts”.

The President has now called for an “immediately required ceasefire, release of hostages and provision of humanitarian supports, it is of the utmost importance that demand and support for serious discussions resume on a meaningful long-term settlement which can provide peace and security to both the people of Palestine and the people of Israel".

“As the Irish Government with others have stated, this must include the recognition of a Palestinian State. Any rhetoric which suggests a future without such a State needs to be confronted directly.” He also called on countries around the world to continue to support the United Nations Relief Work Agency (UNRWA).