Shannon Airport being used to deport Palestinians from US

Kenneth Fox

The use of Shannon Airport for flights carrying Palestinians being deported from the United States has been described as “reprehensible”, “deeply disturbing,” and “outrageous” by Opposition politicians.

As The Irish Times reports, it has been reported that a private jet owned by property tycoon Gil Dezer, a long-time business partner of US President Donald Trump, was used for the flights.

An investigation by the Guardian newspaper, with input from Israeli news site +972 Magazine, found that the flights are part of a secretive and politically sensitive US government operation to deport Palestinians arrested by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to the Israeli-occupied West Bank.

The first of the two flights passed through Shannon Airport on the night of January 20th/21st with eight Palestinian men on board, reportedly with their wrists and ankles shackled.

They were transported in the Gulfstream jet from Arizona to Tel Aviv in Israel with refuelling stops in New Jersey, Shannon Airport, and Bulgaria.

The second flight followed the same route and stopped at Shannon on the night of February 1st/2nd and flew on to Tel Aviv, from where, like the deportees in January, the Palestinians aboard appear to have been taken to the West Bank.

In response to a query on the use of the airport for such flights, a Department of Transport statement noted: “Stops at Irish airports by private aircraft and commercial charters which are technical stops for non-traffic purposes (ie, not picking up or setting down passengers), do not require prior authorisation from the Department of Transport.”

Labour Party foreign affairs spokesman Duncan Smith said: “It is absolutely reprehensible that any ICE deportation flights would be allowed stop and refuel in Shannon. The Taoiseach and Minister for Transport must intervene and ensure this ends ... Ireland cannot in any way be complicit in these Ice flights.”

Green Party leader Roderic O’Gorman said: “It is deeply disturbing to learn that Shannon is being used to facilitate the cruel actions of Donald Trump’s ICE”. He called for the Government to clarify the matter.