In Dublin on Monday the taoiseach said: “Have they, or do they, support Hamas and Hezbollah, because that would be unacceptable.
“I mean Hezbollah are responsible, in my view, for the murder of Sean Rooney.
“And both Hamas and Hezbollah have views that are absolutely… not just views, but participated in terrorist activities and appalling killing of innocent people, as witnessed on October the 7th.
“But it’s not clear to me that they do, that Kneecap does support Hezbollah and Hamas. It’s been asserted that they have made commentary in support of both. I think they need to urgently clarify that.”
He said there was a “huge responsibility” when it comes to the safety of public representatives.
“I think it’s important that free speech is always facilitated and the capacity to speak out and criticise and condemn policies of others. That’s all legitimate. But in terms of life and security and safety of people, that’s a different issue,” he added.
