Israel has fired back at Galway City Councillors who unanimously backed a motion that told the Jewish state its government officials were not welcome in the City of the Tribes while it perpetrates war crimes in Gaza and Lebanon.

The Israeli Embassy in Dublin labelled the vote by City Councillors as an “anti-Israel initiative purely driven by hate”.

At their October meeting, elected members unanimously agreed a motion, which said Galway City Council, “will not welcome any future entry to Galway City by the Prime Minister of Israel, the President of Israel or any member of the Israeli Government, including its ambassadors, for as long as the illegal occupation of Palestine and bordering countries continues, and war crimes are being perpetrated by the Israeli State”.

They also condemned Israel’s incursion into Lebanon.

Proposer, Councillor Níall McNelis (Lab) said it was unlikely the Israeli Government would pay any heed to the motion.

But the Embassy of Israel to Ireland has responded, calling it an “outrageous act against the only Jewish state”.

“In the past year we have seen a troubling rise in anti-Israel discourse in Ireland, which has often mutated into antisemitism and the delegitimisation of Israel.

“Coupled with this, we have witnessed the promotion of certain initiatives which, far from helping the Palestinians, only manifest as punitive actions against Israel,” a spokesperson for Israel said in a statement to the Galway City Tribune.

“The decision taken by Galway City Council is yet another outrageous act against the only Jewish State, especially in the wake of the brutal aggression by Hamas and the ongoing rocket attacks by Hezbollah from Lebanon which have forced scores of thousands of Israelis to flee their homes.

“The decision is not about improving the lives of Palestinians, promoting peace or addressing the terror organisations who control Gaza and Lebanon, but it is another anti-Israeli initiative purely driven by hate,” it added.

At the same October meeting, City Councillors also unanimously backed a motion from Independent Mike Cubbard calling on the Government, to implement the Occupied Territories Bill after the International Court of Justice (ICJ) finding that Israel has unlawfully occupied areas of Palestine.

Pictured: Cllr Niall McNelis: proposed motion that Israeli Government reps are not welcome in Galway.