Barry O'Halloran: Israel's success in Iran opens the way for a Gaza ceasefire but a lasting peace will be hard to maintain
As the tenuous ceasefire between Israel and Iran continued to hold last week, US hopes turned to bringing an end to the war in Gaza. In the wake of the latest Israeli bombing of a beach cafe in Gaza City and the hundreds of Palestinians who have been shot dead queueing for food, it may seem odd that there is optimism for a peace settlement in the war-ravaged enclave. The IDF, after all, has stepped up its strikes in the course of the past week.
And with Friday's announcement that Hamas is also on board, the final piece of the jigsaw is now in place for the US-sponsored negotiations to get under way in earnest.
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RTÉ News
3 hours ago
- RTÉ News
Trump, Netanyahu meet a second time as gaps narrow in ceasefire talks
US President Donald Trump met for a second time in two days with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to discuss Gaza as Mr Trump's Middle East envoy said Israel and Hamas were closing their differences on a ceasefire deal. The Israeli leader departed the White House after just over an hour's meeting with Mr Trump in the Oval Office, with no press access. The two men also met for several hours during a dinner at the White House on Monday during Mr Netanyahu's third US visit since the president began his second term. Mr Netanyahu earlier met with Vice President JD Vance and then visited the US Capitol, and is due back in Congress later today to meet with US Senate leaders. The Israeli leader told reporters after a meeting with the Republican House of Representatives Speaker Mike Johnson that while he did not think Israel's campaign in the Palestinian enclave was done, negotiators are "certainly working" on a ceasefire. "We still have to finish the job in Gaza, release all our hostages, eliminate and destroy Hamas' military and government capabilities," Mr Netanyahu said. Shortly after Mr Netanyahu spoke, Mr Trump's special envoy to the Middle East, Steve Witkoff, said the issues keeping Israel and Hamas from agreeing had dropped to one from four and he hoped to reach a temporary ceasefire agreement this week. "We are hopeful that by the end of this week, we'll have an agreement that will bring us into a 60-day ceasefire. Ten live hostages will be released. Nine deceased will be released," Mr Witkoff told reporters at a meeting of Mr Trump's Cabinet. A delegation from Qatar, which has been hosting indirect talks between Israeli negotiators and the Hamas Palestinian militant group, met with senior White House officials for several hours before Mr Netanyahu's arrival, Axios reported, citing a source familiar with the details. The White House had no immediate comment on the report. The Gaza war erupted when Hamas attacked southern Israel in October 2023, killing around 1,200 people and taking 251 hostages, according to Israeli figures. Some 50 hostages remain in Gaza, with 20 believed to be alive. Israel's retaliatory war in Gaza has killed over 57,000 Palestinians, according to the enclave's health ministry. Most of Gaza's population has been displaced by the war and nearly a million people are facing famine within months, according to United Nations estimates. Mr Trump had strongly supported Mr Netanyahu, even wading into domestic Israeli politics by criticising prosecutors over a corruption trial against the Israeli leader on bribery, fraud and breach-of-trust charges that Mr Netanyahu denies. In his remarks to reporters at the US Congress, Mr Netanyahu praised the Republican, saying there has never been closer coordination between the US and Israel in his country's history.
Irish Times
4 hours ago
- Irish Times
President Trump and the peace prize
Sir, – I turned on the radio this morning to hear a voice telling me that Israel's prime minister Binyamin Netanyahu had nominated US President Donald Trump for the Nobel Peace Prize. I wondered which comedian had come up with this line, but to my amazement, this was the news. I would have laughed, except that I was crying. – Yours, etc, DR TERESA GRAHAM, Tramore, READ MORE Co Waterford.
The Journal
6 hours ago
- The Journal
Irish sovereign wealth fund pumped millions into companies contracted by Israel Defence Forces
IRELAND'S SOVEREIGN WEALTH fund, the Irish Strategic Investment Fund (ISIF), still has holdings in companies with links to Israeli settlements in occupied Palestinian territory. In 2024, then-Minister for Finance Michael McGrath announced that the fund had divested from five companies that are linked to settlement activity that is considered illegal under international law. But the ISIF continues to invest in eight other companies named on a United Nations database - a key document that highlights businesses and parent companies whose subsidiaries enable the continued existence of Israeli settlements. By the end of 2023, the total value of these investments was more than €10 million. As part of a new investigation, The Journal Investigates looked at how much Ireland is investing in these companies and how they are linked to illegal settler activity in Palestine. Many of these investments are in multinationals, but two in particular are in companies that hold contracts with the Israel Defence Forces (IDF): Delek Group and Motorola Solutions Inc. The value of the ISIF's investments in these two companies alone was almost €5 million -roughly the same amount as the State's sovereign wealth fund invested in the other six companies combined. — Investigations like this don't happen without your support… Impactful investigative reporting is powered by people like you. Support The Journal Investigates Advertisement IDF vehicles Out of the eight companies that the ISIF invests in, just one is based solely in Israel: Delek Group, the owner of a chain of petrol stations that was founded in the country in the early 1950s. The ISIF's investment in the company is indirect, which means that it did not directly buy shares or provide capital to Delek, but instead invested in it through an intermediary such as a fund or financial institution that handles investment decisions on Ireland's behalf. As of 2023, the State indirectly invested around €214,000 in Delek, which is best-known in Israel as the operator of a chain of filling stations and convenience stores. A search of Google Maps shows that it operates a handful of these petrol stations in the occupied West Bank, East Jerusalem and the Golan Heights. Google Maps Google Maps However, the company is also linked to the activities of the Israel Defence Forces (IDF): under a contract agreed in 2020, the IDF listed Delek as one of two companies whose petrol stations are allowed to be used by military vehicles to refuel. Delek also reportedly holds other contracts with the Israeli defence industry, according to WhoProfits , an independent group dedicated to 'exposing the role of the private sector in the Israeli occupation economy' through a database. The database has been consulted by the international BDS movement, and WhoProfits has been repeatedly highlighted by the United Nations, including in a report last week by the current Special Rapporteur for Palestine Francesca Albanese. The Journal Investigates contacted Delek Group for comment, but no response was received by the time of publication, and no other recent statements on the company's position about its activities in occupied Palestinian territories could be found. Surveillance systems and checkpoints US-based technology firm Motorola Solutions and its subsidiary, Motorola Solutions Israel, are among just six companies that appear on the UN database for supplying security. The Irish government holds millions in both direct and indirect investments in the parent company. It should not be confused with the telecoms company of the same name, from whom it split in 2011, Motorola Solutions specialises in security products and systems such as video equipment and command centre technology. Sign up The Journal Investigates is dedicated to lifting the lid on how Ireland works. Our newsletter gives you an inside look at how we do this. Sign up here... Sign up .spinner{transform-origin:center;animation:spinner .75s infinite linear}@keyframes spinner{100%{transform:rotate(360deg)}} You are now signed up It holds contracts worth hundreds of millions of Euro with Israel's government and military, and its systems are used extensively throughout the occupied territories, along the separation wall in the West Bank, and at Israeli military bases. The company provides everything from surveillance systems, radar detectors, and mobile communications systems to Israelis living in illegal settlements and the Israel Defence Forces. In a 2012 UN Special Rapporteur for Palestine Richard Falk, named Motorola Solutions Israel as 'sustaining the settlements' and limiting 'the Palestinians' freedom of movement within their territory'. Like Delek Group, the company's activities have also been extensively detailed by WhoProfits. Motorola Solutions has been named as 'the sole supplier of the 4G cellular network for the Israeli military' as well as the sole supplier of Israeli military smartphones after it was given a contract worth $100 million to do so. Human rights groups have also highlighted how the company's MotoEagle Wide Area Surveillance System – which uses radars and cameras to detect movements - has been used as a 'virtual fence system' in dozens of illegal settlements. In addition, Motorola has longstanding contracts with the Israel Prison Service and the country's Population and Immigration Authority – including communications equipment at prisons like Ofer in the West Bank, where Palestinians are held in military detention. As of 2023, the Irish government directly invested around €700,000 and held €3.9 million worth of indirect investments in the company. The Journal Investigates contacted Motorola Solutions for comment, but no response was received by the time of publication. The company has previously told a number of outlets that it supports 'efforts in the region to find a peaceful resolution to the conflict'. The Journal Investigates Reporter: Stephen McDermott • Investigation Editor: Sinead O'Carroll • The Journal Investigates Editor: Maria Delaney • Social Media: Cliodhna Travers • Main Image Design: Lorcan O'Reilly Investigations like this don't happen without your support... Impactful investigative reporting is powered by people like you. Over 5,000 readers have already supported our mission with a monthly or one-off payment. Join them here: Support The Journal
