Israel and Irish political opportunism

Sir, – Barry Andrews MEP (Letters, April 16th) condemns the Israeli ambassador Dana Erlich’s recent article (Opinion & Analysis, April 11th). As a politician with lofty ambitions, following the strong anti-Israel trend in Ireland is a clear vote-winner for Mr Andrews. It does not require any interrogation of the current crisis nor a grasp of the history of the Middle East nor how the current conflict and the concomitant rise in anti-Semitism raise fear for Jews in Ireland.

Most egregious of all, Mr Andrews compares elements of Israeli rhetoric to the Third Reich, claiming his time on the board of Holocaust Education Trust Ireland qualifies him to speak with authority on this subject. Perhaps if he had actually taken one of the courses, he would have understood how such comparisons are a shameful distortion of the Holocaust and an insult to its victims.

The 2,500 Jews in Ireland represent a negligible demographic of the electoral pie so investing the requisite amount of time and energy to engage with Jews does not add up in Irish retail politics. By simply dismissing our views, rather than listening to us, there is no political risk. – Yours, etc,

OLIVER SEARS,