Sinn Féin will not attend St Patrick’s Day events in the White House next month.
It is the second year in a row that the party will boycott the festivities due to US president Donald Trump’s administration’s backing of Israel during the war in Gaza.
Sinn Féin representatives have previously frequently attended St Patrick’s events in the White House.
Both party leader Mary Lou McDonald and Northern Ireland’s First Minister Michelle O’Neill have announced they will not be doing so this year.
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In a statement McDonald said: “Sinn Féin will not attend St Patrick’s Day events at the White House ... The situation on the ground in Gaza and the West Bank remains dire, and the reality is that for all of the talk of a ceasefire, Israeli attacks on Gaza have not ended. The genocide continues.”
She added: “It is important that the eyes of the international community remain focused on what is happening in Palestine and it is important that Sinn Féin uses its voice to demand that international law is upheld and peace and justice prevail.”
McDonald also said: “The ties between the people of Ireland and the United States are of key importance.
“Sinn Féin has deep and enduring bonds that go back decades with those in the United States who played a key role in the peace process and in the campaign for Irish reunification.”
She said the party “continue that work with senior representatives on Capitol Hill, the trade union movement, business leaders, Irish American organisations and the diaspora.”
In a post on social media platform X, O’Neill wrote: “I deeply value the historic relationship between Ireland and the United States, and I remain committed to working with US figures to strengthen our peace and grow our economy.
“However, despite the hopes and promise offered by the ceasefire agreements in Gaza, horrific Israeli military attacks continue”. She accused Israel of “systematic human rights abuses and flagrant breaches of international law” and said: “It is my responsibility as a political leader to stand firmly on the side of humanity”.
Taoiseach Micheál Martin will be travelling to Washington and Trump has invited him to the White House for the annual meeting to mark St Patrick’s Day festivities.
The visit comes against a backdrop of tensions between the Trump administration and the European Union, most recently over Greenland.
While there have been suggestions from some quarters that Martin should not meet Trump this year, the Taoiseach pushed back against these when speaking to reporters in recent weeks.
Martin spoke of the “very important” economic relationship between Ireland and the US and also said: “I haven’t heard of any European Union state that has refused an invitation to the White House yet.”
Northern Ireland’ Deputy First Minister Emma Little-Pengelly of the Democrat Unionist Party (DUP) has previously confirmed she will travel to Washington DC.
