The Irish Prime Minister, Simon Harris, has confirmed that no approval was obtained from any government body for the overflight of weaponry being deployed in the Gaza conflict. In response to media enquiries, Mr. Harris addressed claims that this year, Irish airspace had been trespassed by three flights carrying arms meant for the Israel Defence Forces.
Reports from digital news platform, The Ditch, have suggested that these flights have transported nearly 65 tonnes of military equipment, with the source of these claims being documents released to an Antwerp NGO by Belgian officials.
Mr. Harris, on Monday, stated that he had requested additional information from the relevant government bodies regarding these reports, and has affirmed that no permission was sought from the Israeli authorities for any overflight ferrying military supplies.
Deputy Premier, Micheál Martin also backed these assertions, reiterating that no approval was requested. A spokesperson stated that every foreign military aircraft that plans to overfly or land on Irish soil needs to secure diplomatic clearance. This clearance comes with certain conditions such as the aircraft not being armed or carrying any weapons, ammunition, or explosives. It should also not participate in intelligence gathering nor be part of a military manoeuvre or operation.
The spokesperson added that it is prohibited to transport war munitions on any civilian aircraft within Irish sovereign territory unless specifically exempted by the Minister for Transport under air navigation orders.
To this end, the spokesperson noted, “With regard to civilian flights to Israel, neither in 2023 nor thus far in 2024, have we received any exemption applications or granted any for the transportation of war munitions.”
These practices align with Ireland’s military neutrality policy, the spokesperson emphasized.