Debate contribution: End Israeli Impunity in Gaza
Debate contribution by Ms Sian Mulholland on .
- MLA
- Ms Sian Mulholland
- Party at the time
- Alliance Party
- Date
- 24 June 2025
- Type
- Debate contribution
- Business
- Private Members' Business
- Heading
- End Israeli Impunity in Gaza
- Assembly identifier
- Official Report component 5047600
Read the official Assembly record
Text
Oh my goodness. I know that I am not alone in my horror at what is unfolding on our screens and, actually, in the House. I refer to the communications that I have had from my constituents. On no other topic this year have I had more emails than on the humanitarian issue in Gaza. People can shake their heads and disagree, but I know what my email inbox says. They are not people who support Hamas. They do not wish ill on any civilians, but they say that they feel helpless and hopeless because of the images that they see on social media. After the laughing, the in-jokes from one side of the House and the shouting down of other opinions in this debate, I ask this: where is the respect and humanity?
No, you have to —. You look around the Chamber and —.
Sorry. I will continue. I find it difficult to talk about balance, when some people in the Chamber seen unable to separate Hamas from Palestinian civilians or Israelis from the Israeli Government. There should never be a "but" when we talk about the death of any human. To have any representative in the Chamber say, "What has happened to the Palestinians is awful, but" and then talk about another horrific act is simply horrendous. When we talk about those issues, we do not always have to point to "the other side" or "both sides". I will make a point about the idea that any criticism of the actions of the Israeli Government is antisemitic. I have to reject that notion entirely. It is dangerous and dishonest to conflate the Israeli Government's military campaign with Jewish identity.
The leading cause of child death around the world at this time is the Israeli Government. This year alone, more children have been murdered —.
It is from Save the Children, I believe, and I can send the Member the link.
There is always a "but" and always a, "What about?" This is horrific. Antisemitism, like all forms of racism and hatred, must be opposed wherever it rises, but it is not antisemitic to call out
It is not antisemitic to call out the attacks on Gaza. It is not antisemitic to demand that international law be upheld. It is not. It is not antisemitism to mourn the loss or starvation of Palestinian lives or to call for their protection. We do ourselves and our Jewish friends and neighbours a grave disservice if we allow legitimate criticisms of a military action to be smeared as hate. Before we are asked, yes, we condemn the horrific attacks by Hamas on 7 October 2023. We supported a motion in this Chamber that referenced that. We condemn Hamas unequivocally. The murder of civilians, the taking of hostages and the use of sexual violence against women in a conflict situation are all appalling attacks that rightly shocked the world.
Go on ahead, really briefly.
I will take note of that. However, the reduction and removal of arms is, for me, definitely a key point of that. Every innocent life, whether it is Israeli or Palestinian, is of equal value, and we reaffirm that fundamental truth and call for the immediate release of all hostages. I find the use of starvation particularly horrific. We have seen the harrowing images of emaciated children, and, whilst others will say that it is not starvation, so many charities and NGOs around the world that have said the exact same thing: aid is not getting in, and children are going hungry due to the lack of nutritious items entering the Gaza Strip. New mothers and their babies have been exposed to illnesses resulting from malnutrition. A UNICEF spokesperson warned that children who are experiencing acute malnutrition are particularly vulnerable and their likelihood of dying from simple causes is up to 10 times higher than that of a child elsewhere. He added that access to hospitals in Gaza is no longer safe for ill or malnourished children. That is not a tactic of war; that is a war crime. The deliberate denial of humanitarian aid, the bombing of aid convoys and the killing of people who simply seek to access food and water has to be condemned. It is my view that we have to stand firm in calling for a permanent ceasefire and that a pause is not enough. We should support the call for the British Government to suspend arms sales to Israel. How can we speak of peace when supplying the weapons that perpetuate some of this destruction? We also welcome the actions of Queen's University, Trinity and others that have divested from companies that are complicit in the brutality. I offer some disagreement to Mr Beattie's assertion that boycotting and divestment is a privileged stance that offers no impact. We have seen that work before, and we know that it works. Their stand is a powerful reminder that we all have a role to play in advancing peace and justice, and we owe it to the people of Gaza and to everyone who is affected by this conflict — every mother grieving a child, every father searching rubble for survivors and every child who has known nothing but war — to demand an end to this horror and to press pause, not just for peace but for a just peace and to reaffirm our shared humanity.
902 words. Text as published by the Northern Ireland Assembly.
Assessment
Jev’s structured answers met the documented threshold for “not flagged”.
- Overall probability that the activity is being used to promote, exploit or escalate an identity-based controversy: 0.15 (flagging needs at least 0.70; at or below 0.30 is not flagged).
- None of the five culture-war criteria was met (each was below 0.60).
- Assessed as legitimate policy scrutiny (0.66).
- The text criticises or condemns the framing or division (0.93).
- Subject area: Religion and belief (including people of no religion), churches, faith communities and religious prejudice (including antisemitism and anti-Muslim prejudice).
- The overall probability was at or below the not-flagging threshold.
This is an AI-generated assessment of the text, made against published criteria. It is not a finding of fact about the MLA or their intentions. The Assembly record itself is the fact.
Jev’s structured answers
| Question | Probability | Met? |
|---|---|---|
| Identity framing | 0.14 | No |
| Sectarian or communal antagonism | 0.05 | No |
| Cultural grievance politics | 0.02 | No |
| Dog-whistle messaging | 0.06 | No |
| Controversy escalation | 0.13 | No |
| Legitimate policy scrutiny | 0.66 | Yes |
| Overall judgement | 0.15 | At or below not-flagging threshold |
| Option | Probability |
|---|---|
| No identity-based framing | 0.05 |
| Reports or questions it | 0.00 |
| Criticises or condemns it (chosen) | 0.93 |
| Adopts it | 0.01 |
| Subject | Probability |
|---|---|
| Religion and belief (including people of no religion), churches, faith communities and religious prejudice (including antisemitism and anti-Muslim prejudice) | 1.00 |
| No identity-related subject | 0.00 |
| Flags, emblems, symbols, names and memorials | 0.00 |
| Parades, bonfires and commemorations | 0.00 |
| Irish language, Ulster-Scots and language policy | 0.00 |
Assessed 21 October 2026 at 12:55 UTC by jev-1.13.0 (requested as typesafe/jev) under rubric 2026.10-r9, methodology 1.9.
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