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Tag Archives: Joint Committee on Foreign Affairs

Breen to chair meeting on Gaza crisis

The Joint Committee on Foreign Affairs, under the chairmanship of Deputy Pat Breen, will convene tomorrow (Wednesday) to discuss the current situation in Gaza. Mr Raji Sourani, director of the Palestinian Centre for Human Rights, will appear before the Committee. Mr Sourani is a prominent human rights lawyer from Gaza, and has been working for human rights in the region since 1977. He will provide committee members with an update of the current situation in Gaza, and will discuss issues of accountability for violations of international law in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. “The Joint Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade has a deep interest in the situation in Gaza and committee members are keen to ensure that Ireland continues to make a positive contribution to what is a very challenging situation,” the Clare Fine Gael TD said. “This meeting affords us a valuable opportunity to receive a first hand account of the current situation in Gaza, whose inhabitants face many difficulties …

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Minister Pat Breen

Clare TD visits Ibrahim Halawa in Cairo

The Chairman of the Joint Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade Pat Breen visited Wadi Al-Natrun prison in Cairo for a 90 minute meeting with Ibrahim Halawa on Wednesday afternoon. This follows a meeting between Deputy Breen and members of the Halawa family at Leinster House on Monday. Deputy Breen said that he found Ibrahim in reasonable spirits, despite the serious challenges of his detention over the past two years. “Earlier today [Wednesday] I met with Ibrahim Halawa in the Wadi Al-Natrun prison. I found him a young man in reasonable spirits in what are very trying circumstances. On behalf of the committee, I relayed our ongoing interest in his case and the concerns of his family in relation to his health and well-being and that I would bring these concerns to the relevant authorities. Ibrahim was appreciative of my presence and thanked the committee for its ongoing interest in his case. I expressed the committee’s continued support to him …

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Minister Pat Breen

Breen meets Halawa family in Leinster House

The Chairman of the Joint Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade Pat Breen has this afternoon met with members of the family of Ibrahim Halawa in Leinster House in advance of his visit to Egypt. Last month, Deputy Breen accepted an invitation from the Egyptian authorities, which followed a formal Committee request to visit Cairo. Deputy Breen says the meeting with the Halawas and their representatives was an important listening exercise, which will inform the official visit to Cairo, which begins on this Tuesday. “Today marks the two year anniversary of Ibrahim’s imprisonment in Cairo and the Committee has considered the case on an ongoing basis over the course of his detainment. All Committee Members are united in our grave concern for the well-being of Ibrahim Halawa. This afternoon’s meeting with Ibrahim’s sisters was a valuable opportunity to hear the family’s concerns for Ibrahim’s health and well-being. The discussions will inform my visit – on behalf of the Joint Committee …

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