Statement from the Bloody Sunday Trust, read at the Candlelight Procession for the Children of Palestine on 25 January 2024 as part of the annual Bloody Sunday commemoration. The statement was read by Evan Curran, grand-nephew of William Nash, one of those murdered on Bloody Sunday.
There were up to 257 children aged 17 or under killed in the north of Ireland between 1969 and 1998.
This terrible statistic equals an average of around nine a year during almost thirty years of conflict.
Over 600 Ukrainian children have been killed since the Russian invasion. Around 300 a year.
Another terrible statistic.
In Gaza, in just the first three months of the current Israeli attack, the number of children killed could be over 10,000.
10,000 children dead in three months is not a terrible statistic.
It is a crime beyond description. It is a crime that should be beyond imagination, but unfortunately isn’t.
And the attacks, and the murder of children, continue.
How many more children must die, along with their families, before this terrible crime is brought to an end?
Before the perpetrators are brought to justice?
One child killed is a tragedy and a crime. And this includes those Israeli children who were killed by Hamas and others.
But 10,000+ children dead?
What is that?
That is the genocide of a generation.
That is the genocide of the future of the Palestinian people.
That is the genocide of the future of Palestine.
The world must act now to stop this terrible slaughter.
Unlike the holocaust, or Kenya, or Cambodia, or Rwanda, there is no cover for this violence.
The world can clearly see it happening.
We can see it happening in real time, on social media, on 24hr streaming news services.
There is no ignorance. There is no excuse to claim ignorance.
But the perpetrators don’t care. They just deny reality, spin their weak lies, and carry on. With the help of their compliant international supporters.
But we can see through their lies. We can see the truth.
And so too can the world leaders who have the power to stop this. They know the truth. They can see genocide that is happening. And they must stop it. And stop it now.
People in their millions across the world, including in this city, have demanded an end to this and it is time we were listened to.
We have the power to influence this though our votes, through our spending power, and through our voices. And we will do so.
We will not support political leaders who support Israeli violence.
We will not give our money to companies who support Israeli violence.
We will continue to condemn the genocide we see in Palestine.
And we, ordinary people all around the world who know the difference between right and wrong, between self defence and genocide, will ensure that it stops.
We will continue to protest until Palestinians can live in peace. Until Palestine is free.
Ní saoirse go saoirse na Palaistíne.
