Irish Ambassador summoned for Israeli dressing-down amid uproar over Leo Varadkar Emily Hand tweet
Taoiseach had tweeted ‘an innocent child who was lost has now returned’
Taoiseach Leo Varadkar (Brian Lawless/PA)
The Irish Ambassador has been summoned for an angry dressing-down by the Israeli authorities after a tweet by Taoiseach Leo Varadkar.
The row is the latest in an ever-growing list of diplomatic tensions between Ireland and Israel since the Hamas attack on October 7, that led to Israel’s war in Gaza.
Mr Varadkar was commenting on X, formerly Twitter, about the release of Emily Hand, describing her as having been ‘lost’ for 50 days.
A video released on Sunday morning shows Emily embracing her father Thomas Hand in an emotional reunion.
Emily was seized from her home in on October 7th.
Thomas and Emily Hand reunited tonight.
But Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen hit the roof in response to Mr Varadkar’s post.
He furiously wrote in response: “Emily Hand was not lost.
“Emily Hand was kidnapped by a terrorist organisation worse than Isis after her stepmother was murdered.”
Mr Cohen, who recently met Tánaiste Micheál Martin, accused the Taoiseach: “Emily and over 30 other Israeli children were kidnapped by Hamas and you are trying to legitimise it
We need your consent to load this Social Media content. We use a number of different Social Media outlets to manage extra content that can set cookies on your device and collect data about your activity.
. Shame on you!”
Irish Ambassador Sonya McGuinness, who is based in Tel Aviv, will now have to travel to Jerusalem to be formally rebuked.
The Department of Foreign Affairs had no immediate reaction in response, it said.
The Irish Independent has sought comment from both Mr Varadkar and Foreign Affairs Minister Micheál Martin.
Mr Cohen’s attack on the Taoiseach broke all normal codes of diplomacy as he began his response tweet: “Emily Hand is not lost. Maybe you have lost your moral compass and your connection to reality.”
He was answering Mr Varadkar, who wrote: “This is a day of enormous joy and relief for Emily Hand and her family.
“An innocent child who was lost has now returned, and we breathe a massive sigh of relief. Our prayers have been answered.”
Tánaiste Micheál Martin and Israeli foreign minister Eli Cohen, right, visit Kibbutz Beeri to see the damage that the community sustained after the October 7 attack by Hamas. Photo: Reuters
The Israeli Foreign Ministry itself issued no statement as the bitter reaction threatened to undermine relations between the two countries.
Israel has long seen Ireland as the most pro-Palestinian country in Europe.
In a formal statement welcoming Emily’s release on Saturday night Mr Varadkar also used the word ‘lost.’
“An innocent child who was lost has now been found and returned… a little girl was snatched from her home and held captive for almost seven weeks. She spent her ninth birthday as a hostage.
“We hope she will soon heal and recover from the traumatic experience in the loving embrace of her family.
“For her family, these seven weeks have been a slow and cruel torture. We all recall the initial response from her father Tom Hand – the painful grief mixed with relief with the mistaken belief that his daughter had not been taken hostage, which turned into an ember of hope when it was discovered she was still alive. Throughout all these different emotions his love has been constant.
“Tom and Emily’s half-sister Natali turned that ember of hope into a flame by channelling their sorrow and campaigning tirelessly for Emily’s release. They travelled across Europe to keep her plight in the public eye.”
Watch: Emily Hand runs into the arms of her father, after she is released from captivity
Mr Varadkar said that when he met Tom and Natali in Dublin, their pain was “etched on their faces, but so was their courage and determination to ensure that Emily would be freed.”
He added: “I shared their grief and was inspired by their example. Irish people everywhere share in the relief of Emily’s family.
“Our thoughts and prayers are with all the hostages in Gaza, but we followed particularly closely the fate of Emily, a dual Irish-Israeli citizen. Since our country first heard that she may still be alive, we have hoped beyond hope that her name would be on one of the lists of hostages to be released.
“Emily now returns to her family, but we cannot forget that many more hostages remain in captivity in Gaza. Their fate is unknown, but we hope that like Emily, they will also be allowed to return to their homes and their families.”
He said more generally: “We think of all the families suffering in this troubled region, and we redouble our efforts to work for a permanent ceasefire, and for a just and lasting peace.”
