Israeli President Blasts Dublin’s “Shameful and Disgraceful” Move to Erase Chaim Herzog’s Legacy

By FrumNews.com

London, UK — On Motzei Shabbos, Israeli President Isaac Herzog, who is the son of former President Chaim Herzog, slammed the efforts by Dublin to remove the name of the sixth Israeli president from a park in the Irish capital.

The move to rename the park in Rathgar to the shameful chant “Free Palestine” will be debated on Sunday in the Dublin City Council. The local Jewish community accused the move as a visible sign of anti-Semitism.

The Chair of the Jewish Representative Council of Ireland, Maurice Cohen, called on councillors to reject the outrageous motion—saying the “removal of the Herzog name from this park would be widely understood as an attempt to erase our Irish Jewish history.”

“Beyond being an Israeli leader, Chaim Herzog was also a hero of the campaign to liberate Europe from the Nazis and a figure who dedicated his life to establishing the values of freedom, tolerance, the pursuit of peace, and the fight against anti-Semitism,” President Herzog slammed the motion to rename the park. “Removing the Herzog name, if it happens, would be a shameful and disgraceful move. We hope that the legacy of a figure at the forefront of establishing the relations between Israel and Ireland, and the fight against anti-Semitism and tyranny, will still get the respect it deserves today.”

He went on to point out the fresh irony as former President Chaim Herzog’s father, Rabbi Isaac HaLevi Herzog, served as the first Chief Rabbi of the Irish Free State from 1921 to 1936, who “left a significant mark on the life of the Irish nation in those days. Naming the park after his son, some three decades ago, expressed appreciation for his legacy and the deep friendship between the Irish and Jewish peoples.

“Unfortunately, this relationship has deteriorated in recent years, yet we still hope for the recovery of these important ties,” he added.

Israel’s minister for foreign affairs, Gideon Sa’ar, said it vindicated his closure of the Israeli embassy in Dublin last year.

***

The UK-based Times reported that Irish foreign affairs minister, Helen McEntee, said—while criticizing Israel—“renaming a Dublin park in this way, to remove the name of an Irish Jewish man, has nothing to do with this and has no place in our inclusive republic.”

Ireland & Israel

Over the several year, the Irish government has strained its relationship with Israel over the past two years.

Before the war broke out, the relationship was mutually beneficial—in terms of trade—with Ireland exporting approximately $1.83B worth of goods to Israel in 2022, according to the Observatory of Economic Complexity (OEC), and importing $3.86B from Israel, during the same year.

Last December, after the Irish government recognized a “Palestinian state”—which was welcomed by the Hamas terrorist regime—Israel recalled its ambassador and closed its embassy in Ireland, as previously mentioned.

It also supported politically motivated cases against Israeli leaders at the ICC, and supported South Africa’s legal action against the Israeli government in the International Court of Justice (ICJ)—accusing Israel of ‘genocide,’ and attempting to redefine the term to support the unfounded allegations.

“The actions and anti-Semitic rhetoric used by Ireland against Israel are rooted in the delegitimization and demonization of the Jewish state,” Foreign Minister Sa’ar said at the time. Along with double standards. Ireland has crossed every red line in its relations with Israel. Israel will invest its resources in advancing bilateral relations with countries worldwide according to priorities that also take into account the attitudes and actions of these states toward Israel.”