President Michael D. Higgins, following an award ceremony at the Irish Development Education Association (IDEA) Conference in Malahide, has addressed the latest situation in Gaza.

Higgins was the inaugural recipient of the Global Voice for Humanity Award.

“With famine imminent in Gaza, immediate multilateral action and immediate recovery of the aid distribution system must be prioritised by the international community,” he said.

The President spoke in support of the motion agreed in Dáil Éireann on Wednesday, calling for an Emergency Special Session of the UN General Assembly. This mirrors his previous statements at the National Famine Commemoration on May 17, calling the situation in Gaza “forced starvation.”

“We are at a critical moment,” he said. “The Commissioner General of UNRWA, the United Nations agency for Palestinian refugees, Philippe Lazzarini has warned that the ’clock is ticking towards famine’ and that the new aid distribution model in Gaza is ‘a waste of resources and a distraction from atrocities’ when there is already an aid distribution system that is fit for purpose.

“No member of the international community can avert its gaze,” he added. “The urgency of providing clean water, medicine and food cannot be delayed by political disagreements on what might be long drawn out legislative processes, which would mean aid arriving too late for much of the population.”

Read the full speech below:

With famine imminent in Gaza, immediate multilateral action and immediate recovery of the aid distribution system must be prioritised by the international community.

I welcome the motion agreed in Dáil Éireann today, mandating the Government to call for an Emergency Special Session of the UN General Assembly where Ireland would call for immediate collective measures to address the horrific situation in Gaza.

This is an approach which I have previously advocated, including in my keynote address at the 2025 National Famine Commemoration earlier this month.

We are at a critical moment. The Commissioner General of UNRWA, the United Nations agency for Palestinian refugees, Philippe Lazzarini has warned that the ’clock is ticking towards famine’ and that the new aid distribution model in Gaza is ‘a waste of resources and a distraction from atrocities’ when there is already an aid distribution system that is fit for purpose.

UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, Tom Fletcher, has likewise urged the UN Security Council to take concrete steps to uphold international law and protect civilians, calling for unimpeded humanitarian access, respect for UN personnel and facilities, and the immediate and unconditional release of all hostages.

No member of the international community can avert its gaze. The urgency of providing clean water, medicine and food cannot be delayed by political disagreements on what might be long drawn out legislative processes, which would mean aid arriving too late for much of the population. Aid deliveries must move into Gaza now and at scale. That is what a genuine humanitarian response calls for.

Ireland has rightly taken a leading position in calling for immediate measures to be taken to support the starving people of Gaza, but we must insist on a response.

There is a collective moral obligation on all countries, and at EU level, to follow this lead and to use their influence to bring this about.