The Irish Government must demand that Israel releases the Irish citizens it is holding captive, including the sister of President Catherine Connolly, according to Social Democrats foreign affairs spokesperson Patricia Stephenson and Galway West by-election candidate M\u00edde Nic Fhionnlaoich.<\/p>\n
Senator Stephenson said:<\/p>\n
\u201cDr Margaret Connolly, President Catherine Connolly\u2019s sister, has been illegally detained by Israel, and is now presumably being illegally held in Israeli captivity.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe boat which Dr Connolly was travelling on is part of the Global Sumud Flotilla, which was taking part in a legal, non-violent humanitarian mission to Gaza, delivering food, medicine and baby formula.<\/p>\n
\u201cIsrael has once more shown a complete disregard for international law by committing this act of piracy in international waters off the coast of Cyprus.<\/p>\n
\u201c15 Irish citizens are sailing as part of the Global Sumud Flotilla – the Government must raise its voice on behalf of Dr Connolly and others who may have been detained and demand their immediate release and that Israel ceases these acts of aggression.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Flotilla\u2019s aim is to deliver much-needed aid to Gaza, which has been obliterated by the Israeli Defence Forces and Benjamin Netanyahu\u2019s murderous regime, which described the mission as a \u2018provocation\u2019.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe only provocation here is Israel\u2019s flagrant violation of international law by detaining our citizens in international waters. The Government must demand the immediate release of Dr Connolly and any other Irish citizens in Israeli captivity.\u201d<\/p>\n
Galway West by-election candidate M\u00edde Nic Fhionnlaoich said:<\/p>\n
\u201cWe need to know what action the Minister of Foreign Affairs is taking to ensure their safety, and indeed, all the volunteers participating in the Global Sumud Flotilla. Minister Helen McEntee must urgently make a statement on the matter.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s beyond time that European leaders find the courage to suspend the EU-Israel Association Agreement, while our Government must stop its shameful dithering and pass the Occupied Territories Bill. Israel cannot be allowed to act as a rogue state any longer.\u201d<\/p>\n
May 18th, 2026<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" The Irish Government must demand that Israel releases the Irish citizens it is holding captive, including the sister of President Catherine Connolly, according to Social Democrats foreign affairs spokesperson Patricia Stephenson and Galway West by-election candidate M\u00edde Nic Fhionnlaoich. Senator Stephenson said: \u201cDr Margaret Connolly, President Catherine Connolly\u2019s sister, has been illegally detained by Israel, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":17790,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[806,718,803,641,7],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-17788","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-galway-west","category-israel","category-mide-nic-fhionnlaoich","category-patricia-stephenson","category-press-release"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n