The Tánaiste is open to banning Israeli airlines which transport weapons through Irish airspace without a permit.
A Department of Transport inquiry has found that nine flights passed over Ireland either destined for Israel or Israeli munitions companies which it is believed carried weapons of war.
Under existing laws, it is illegal to fly weapons through Irish airspace unless a waiver is granted by the transport minister, which none of the nine flights received.
Speaking at the UN In New York, Micheál Martin said that companies which carry out the practice without getting approval could be banned from flying over Ireland entirely. Mr Martin said that the government “never received any requests”.
“Government wasn’t aware of any violations of Irish airspace. The Department of Transport has been engaging the relevant authorities in respect of this and the particular company. And we facilitated in terms of dialogue with the Belgian government.
“Clearly now there have been quite a number of flights that have been in violation of our sovereign airspace. It now remains for government, as we go forward, and get further clarifications and verification of the cargo on those planes to take whatever actions. I think the basic action is the possibility of saying to those companies that you may not fly through Irish aerospace, if you violate the basic rules that govern this.”
Mr Martin said that a ban is “about what we can do”.
“We’re not going to be flying planes, shadowing planes, that’s not going to be a reality, let’s be honest. But in the multilateral world, we expect companies to abide by the basic rules. And the basic rules here are, if you wish to bring a cargo through our sovereign airspace, and then that gets considered by the Department of Transport, that’s the norm.
Mr Martin said that the Government would consider the department’s report before making a decision on the issue. Deadly weapons and military equipment were allegedly carried on nine flights over Ireland destined for Israel since the invasion of Gaza.
Both Taoiseach Simon Harris and Mr Martin had previously denied that this was happening. But following freedom of information requests released by the Belgian government to anti-war NGO Vredesactie, documents indicated that cargo flights from the US had carried munitions to Israel, flying over sovereign Irish airspace.
The Ditch website then published details online, saying that flights carrying explosives had flown through Irish sovereign airspace en route to Israel. The Department of Transport is now investigating the allegations about the flights published in The Ditch, a spokesperson for the department said.
The department has verified that nine of 11 civil aircraft reported to have carried munitions of war did enter Irish sovereign airspace. But, regarding the cargo reported on board these flights, “the department is working to confirm the accuracy of these reports.”
“Therefore, it is not yet definitively clear whether the cargo being carried would have required the granting of an exemption by the minister to the airline,” a spokesperson said.
Irish law requires permission by the Department of Transport before aircraft carrying “munitions of war” pass through Irish sovereign territory. But no licences to transport munitions of war to Israel had been sought or granted since the war in Gaza, the department previously said.
Two of the 11 aircraft alleged to have entered Irish airspace en route from New York to Israel carrying munitions did not enter Irish sovereign airspace, the spokesperson said. However, the department said it was important to distinguish between Irish sovereign airspace and Irish-controlled airspace.
“Irish-controlled airspace extends for a substantial distance into the Atlantic Ocean. The use of the word ‘control’ does not imply that Ireland holds sovereign rights over this region. Rather, through international agreement Ireland provides air traffic control services for it, which helps to ensure the safety of aircraft engaged in international navigation.
“Irish sovereign territory includes the portion of the island of Ireland the Government exerts legislative control over and this further extends 12 nautical miles out from this area. Irish sovereign airspace conforms to this boundary and extends for a yet to be internationally agreed maximum altitude into the air.”
The spokesperson said that speculation on what course of action the Government might take “would not be helpful” until the facts have been fully established.
The explosives and other munitions were allegedly transported by air cargo company Challenge Group. The asked the Challenge Group for comment. A second airline also allegedly carried fighter jet parts and other equipment through Irish airspace.
The department is now engaging with the airlines involved, the spokesperson said.
Cork North Central People Before Profit-Solidarity TD Mick Barry on Monday morning called for a total ban on Israeli flights through Irish airspace. “It is not acceptable that weapons of war which are used against children are being transported through Irish airspace,” Mr Barry said.
“The Government would seem to have been operating a ‘don’t ask, don’t tell’ policy and their assurances that nothing was going on have been shown now to be completely false. If Israeli flight companies are going to break Irish law with impunity then the only logical response is to ban all Israeli flights within Irish airspace”.