Irish President Michael D. Higgins has called on the United Nations to exclude both Israel and nations supplying it with weapons, invoking a recent UN Human Rights Council inquiry that found Israel is committing genocide in Gaza.
Speaking at the National Ploughing Championships, one of his final significant public appearances before his term ends, Higgins described the UN report led by independent experts as “a very, very important document.” He noted the commission, which also includes the chair of the Rwanda inquiry, determined that four of the main acts spelled out under the 1948 Genocide Convention are being met in Gaza. The report further asserts incitement to genocide and implicates those in high positions using already dangerous rhetoric.
Higgins argued that those found to be practising genocide, and those supporting it through arms provision, should no longer be part of the UN. “We must look at their exclusion from the United Nations itself,” he said, adding that trade with actors inflicting what he described as atrocity on human beings should end without hesitation.
The remarks deepen tensions around Israel’s military operations in Gaza, which have already resulted in a significant death toll and widespread destruction. The commission’s findings—though not binding—could shape actions in international courts, influence diplomatic postures, and prompt renewed debate on arms exports and foreign policy among UN member states.
Reactions are likely to vary sharply: supporters of Higgins’ stance see this as a moral imperative and potential turning point for international accountability, while critics may dismiss it as unworkable diplomatically, raise concerns about bias or legal standards, or argue that exclusion from the UN is unrealistic under current international law. So far, Israel has rejected the genocide findings.
