9 Ways Irish People Are Helping Gaza – & How You Can Too

Photo by Şeyma D / Pexels

Irish Artists for Palestine

In November of 2023, a huge number of Irish artists banded together to create the Irish Artists for Palestine initiative. This included lots of Irish writers, musicians, poets and screenwriters.

Since their establishment, they have been consistently organising gigs and events to help raise funds for charities involved with the conflict in Gaza. They also led a boycott against this year’s Eurovision due to Israel’s place in the competition.

You can find out more about their work, and support the group, here. 

Bohemians Football Club

This month, local football club Bohs invited the Palestine National Football team over to Dublin for an historic game.

The Palestinian team won 2-1 against Bohs – their first ever European game, which had sold out. Bohs invited the team over to Ireland to raise funds for Gaza, and as an act of solidarity with the Palestinian people.

You can follow the team’s journey around Dublin here. 

 

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Art For Gaza

Earlier this year, Whyte’s auctioneers hosted a special Art For Gaza event, featuring a whole host of beautiful pieces in aid of Gaza. The event took place in March, and all proceeds went towards Médecins Sans Frontières (Doctors Without Borders), working on the ground in the war zone.

There are no upcoming auctions at the moment but you can keep an eye for any announcements here. 

Operation Olive Branch

Operation Olive Branch is a fundraising initiative started on TikTok. Users, particularly those with a large following, connect with a family stuck in Gaza, and advocate for donations to their GoFundMe pages.

One Irish TikToker who has taken part in this operation is Aoife Farrell (@aoifeofarrell on TikTok).  She recently reached out to her 116k followers to encourage them to donate to Abdallah and his family. Many Irish influencers have also played a role in Operation Olive Branch.

You can find out more here. 

@mickymorelli What is Operation Olive Branch? Explained 🍉 Scroll down to the bottom of the spreadsheet to make sure you don’t neglect the people at the bottom! #operationolivebranch #SaveAbdelrahmansFamily #saveamirasfamily #operationfloodgates #savesalamsfamily #alleyesonrafah #freepalestine🇵🇸❤️ and #ceasefireNOW ♬ open water – sped up – TXZZ

The Ireland Palestine Solidarity Campaign

The IPSC was set up in 2001 by human rights groups and activists to raise awareness of the situation in Occupied Territories and provide a voice for Palestinians living in Ireland.

The group regularly hold events and demonstrations around the country including national marches and emergency protests.

You can find out more about their upcoming events here. 

Student Protests

Multiple student encampments have sprung up around Ireland in recent weeks in solidarity with Palestine. UCD and UCC are among the latest, with students setting up camps on campus, led by a Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) group.

This comes following a successful protest in Trinity College, which saw the university commit to cutting ties with Israeli institutions.

 

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A post shared by UCC Students’ Union (@uccsu)

Chef Lilly Higgins

Chef Lilly recently launched a new cookbook featuring over 60 recipes, the proceeds from which will all go towards a family she knows living in Gaza.

She said: “All of the proceeds from this book with go to my friend Habib’s family that are currently in Gaza. So many people have messaged me to say how helpless they feel but this is a way that we can help. Thank you so so much for your continued support. Together we can make a real difference to the Alostaz family.”

You can pick up Lilly’s book here. 

Table Quiz For Palestine

A table quiz in support of Palestine will take place in Dublin’s The Other Hand at the Circular in June.

The event will feature a quiz, prizes, DJs, a raffle, and all of the proceeds will go towards the Ireland Palestine Solidarity Campaign.

 

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A post shared by Zara Hedderman (@zara_hedderman)

#Blockout2024

Social media is of course playing a considerably role in the support of Palestine in Ireland. Over the past few weeks, many users have been engaging in a ‘blockout’ – blocking celebrities, companies, and people of note who have not addressed Israel’s attacks in Gaza.

The idea is that these accounts will lose followers and therefore lose eyes on their content, therefore affecting their reach and advertising.

Additional reporting by Aicha Chalouche

• gaza
• palestine