Letters: Our government should be saluted for taking the right stance on Palestine

What has happened since? I don’t care. I salute the Government for its bravery, its recognition of the Irish soul, for taking its place among the civilised nations of the world and for putting the state of Palestine on the road to peace, prosperity and potential.

The hard work starts now. Israel and its ally, America, will start the pushback on Ireland. But remember – we survived worse in the name of justice and fair play.

A nation whose back was almost broken by the Great Famine stands shoulder to shoulder today with once apartheid-stricken South Africa as the beacon holder of humanity.

John Cuffe, Co Meath

Silence by other nations surrounding Israel should worry Western politicians

Your editorial (‘Rafah horrors show Israel will not stop its brutal campaign until it is confronted by power’, Irish Independent, May 28) is a factual and frightening piece of writing.

The headline could well be ‘...until Netanyahu and his cohorts are confronted by power’, for it is this cabal that has caused the current brutality in Gaza.

What should concern Western politicians is the silence of the nations surrounding Israel.

Are they biding their time until Netanyahu and company have completely and utterly depleted their goodwill in the world at large?

Declan Foley, Melbourne, Australia

Occupied Territories Bill must be enacted while sanctions also required

The announcement by the Taoiseach of formal recognition of the state of Palestine is a very welcome gesture.

But for this move to have any real effect it must be followed up with real measures. The Government must immediately enact the Occupied Territories Bill, introduce sanctions against Israel and block the US military use of Shannon Airport to supply Israel.

The latest horrific images from Rafah make these measures imperative.

Art Ó Laoghaire, Bray, Co Wicklow

Shame on Dana Erlich and her colleagues for anti-Irish propaganda

Following the deaths of 35,700 people in Gaza up to May 25 – too many of them innocent men, women and children – together with the mass bombing and use of US-made bombs, which have destroyed 370,000 housing units in Gaza, it is unsurprising that Israel’s prime minister and defence minister have been cited by the International Court of Justice for creating conditions that could be framed as genocide.

Right-minded people everywhere condemn the October 7 killings and kidnappings by Hamas. The failure of the EU and successive US governments to have recognised and promoted a Palestinian state since 1948 and the continuous land grab by Israel are to be deplored.

Now we are subjected to megaphone diplomacy by the Israeli ambassador to Ireland, Dana Erlich, with the nauseating release by her foreign ministry of innocent Irish children dancing in a video made by Israeli propagandists. Shame on the Israeli government and the ambassador for their anti-Irish propaganda.

The brave governments of Ireland, Spain and Norway are correct in trying to push for peace in this long-troubled region, and the Israeli ambassador to Ireland should be severely reprimanded for her government’s attempt to bully Ireland in its efforts to build peace.

The Irish government should press on and build an alliance to put a stop to the madness of this ultra-right-wing Israeli government.

James J Ryan, Lisnagry, Co Limerick

Simon Harris is wrong: our move with Spain and Norway is the distraction

Taoiseach Simon Harris’s assertion that Israeli ambassador Dana Erlich’s warning about the potential damage to the Irish economy following the recognition of a Palestinian state is a “distraction” is more than a little disingenuous.

The ambassador is quite correct to point out the economic consequences. Indeed, it could be argued that the move by Ireland, along with just one other EU member, Spain, as well as Norway, could itself be described as a “distraction”.

Peter Declan O’Halloran, Belturbet, Co Cavan

Fancy a flutter on Mayo for Sam? Rare sight in county means it may be their year

With regard to the sighting of the rare yellow-crowned night heron in Mayo – the first recorded sighting of the bird in Ireland or the UK – maybe this is an omen that the Sam Maguire Cup might also be spotted in the county later this year?

Colm O’Fatharta, Ráth Garbh, Áth Cliath

As my UK drive showed, going long distance in an electric car is a risky move

Reading the article on EV chargers in your paper (May 27) reminded me of my observations while driving from York to London on December 26, 2022.

During that Christmas period there was a national train strike, so the only option for many was to drive their electric cars, which were rather more popular back then.

As the owner of an electric car since 2018, I was fully aware of the perils of driving long distances without EV charging points along the way.

For this reason, I decided to take my 2007 diesel Citroen. Every service station along the route on the M1 motorway had tailbacks at least a mile long that were full of electric cars queuing for a charge.

Currently in the UK, most service stations along motorways have a bank of eight Tesla-only charging units and on average four more charging units for all other makes of electric cars.

The problem lies when you drive your electric car into a motorway service station – it’s a lucky dip to get an available charging point that’s working. If you’re out of luck, this can add hours to your journey.

I wish the national road plan in Ireland the best of luck to reach its 2050 targets. By then, electric cars will have far greater driving ranges, which will take the burden away from motorway service station charging points.

Seamus Joyce, Richmond, London