Irish Reactions to Palestine and Israel Favorite 

Palestinian and Israeli flags flutter in pro-Irish and pro-UK neighbourhoods in Northern Ireland, tapping into its own history of conflict and division that still affects everyday life despite a 1998 peace deal that largely ended violence.

The growing number of flags displayed are supplemented by murals and graffiti showing support for either the Palestinians or Israel, depending on which side of Northern Ireland's sectarian divide they are located.

On the Falls Road, a main artery in the mostly pro-Irish western districts of Belfast, Pat Sheehan, a lawmaker with Sinn Fein, the former political wing of the paramilitary IRA, explained that local people feel "empathy" for Palestinians.

"If there's any nation that can understand the difficulties that the Palestinians are living under now it's the Irish," Sheehan told AFP in front of a freshly painted pro-Palestinian mural.

"Ireland has suffered colonialism and occupation for 800 years, there have been many armed uprisings against British rule, and we see Palestinians suffering under similar colonial occupation."

At a ceremony two weeks ago Sheehan unveiled the mural, which is emblazoned with "Free Palestine" and portrays a clenched fist painted in both Palestinian and Irish colours.

Later the same day, the grey-haired 65-year-old -- who survived 55 days on a prison hunger strike in 1981 -- addressed a pro-Palestinian rally in central Belfast that drew thousands of sympathisers.

Palestinian flags have long been flown in pro-republican areas, but their numbers have risen dramatically in recent weeks.

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Last month [November 2023], Leo Varadkar, Ireland’s prime minister, said he strongly believed that Israel had the right to defend itself, but that what was unfolding in Gaza “resembles something approaching revenge.”

Ireland’s president, Michael D. Higgins, whose post as head of state is considered above the political fray, described “unanimous revulsion” at the Hamas attacks, but said that Israeli strikes that killed civilians threatened to leave human rights agreements “in tatters.”

Those views are mainstream in Ireland. In a poll published last month, about 71 percent of respondents classified Israel’s response as “disproportionately severe.” About 65 percent also said that Hamas should be officially proscribed as a terrorist organization. Tens of thousands have taken part in weekly protests calling for an end to Israeli attacks on Gaza.

Jane Ohlmeyer, a history professor at Trinity College Dublin and author of “Making Empire: Ireland, Imperialism and the Early Modern World,” said that the country’s status as a former British colony had “undoubtedly shaped how people from Ireland engage with post-colonial conflicts.”