DUBLIN, Ireland: An Oireachtas committee has called on the Central Bank of Ireland to immediately conduct an internal review before agreeing to renew Israel's request to facilitate the sale of its government bonds in the European Union.

This recommendation was made in a newly released report from the Joint Committee on Finance, which focused on the Israeli Bonds Programme.

The cross-party committee stated that the Central Bank should examine its current role in approving the Israeli bond prospectus closely, particularly in light of concerns about human rights and international law.

The bank currently acts as the designated authority responsible for approving the sale of Israeli bonds in the EU, following the UK's departure from the EU in 2021. Prior to Brexit, Israel had used the UK as its "Home Member State" under the EU Prospectus Regulation. This legal framework sets out the rules for issuing securities in EU markets.

After Brexit, Ireland became Israel's chosen Home Member State, making the Central Bank of Ireland responsible for reviewing and approving Israeli bond prospectuses.

The committee's chair, Sinn Féin TD Mairead Farrell, said the Central Bank's role had become "a matter of concern." She explained that while the bank can only reject a prospectus on legal grounds, it should now undertake a full internal review to determine whether Israel's bond filings meet the required standards of accuracy, transparency, and completeness under EU law.

Earlier this year, the committee held two public hearings on the issue, inviting testimony from Central Bank officials, the Ireland-Palestine Solidarity Campaign, and international law expert Dr. Munir Nuseibah from Al Quds University in Jerusalem.

The committee issued 15 recommendations in its report. Among them, it urged the Irish Government to work with other EU member states to amend the existing prospectus rules so that individual central banks can refuse to process or approve bond requests on specific legal or ethical grounds. It also encouraged the central bank to coordinate with its EU counterparts to create a unified mechanism for such refusals.

One key recommendation is that the Central Bank should not renew Israel's bond prospectus in September unless it is fully satisfied that it meets EU standards. If necessary, it should request additional information from Israeli authorities and seek legal advice to confirm that its decisions do not conflict with international law.

The committee also suggested that the Government examine whether Ireland could impose national restrictions in response to Israel's actions, particularly in light of the recent July 2024 opinion from the International Court of Justice.

Farrell concluded that Ireland has long supported the Palestinian people and now must ask whether it is doing enough to uphold that stance.