Israeli authorities announced yesterday that Dublin Lord Mayor Micheál MacDonncha was barred from entering the country over his “ties to the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement”.
Government wanted to ban Mayor of Dublin from entering Israel bc he advocates a boycott. Ministers competed over credit for banning him. And then they spelled his name wrong and he’s here. ??♀️??♀️??♀️ https://t.co/1hJB71DfPF
— Lahav Harkov (@LahavHarkov) April 11, 2018
MacDonncha, however, was already in Ramallah, in the occupied West Bank, having flow in through Tel Aviv airport.
I can confirm I am in Ramallah and preparing for tomorrow's conference. https://t.co/F2Y5Q8IzGJ
— Lord Mayor of Dublin (@LordMayorDublin) April 10, 2018
Israel’s Interior Ministry later admitted that the mayor had entered Israel “due to a typo”.
According to reports, Israeli officials had mistaken the caption “Ardmhéara Micheál MacDonncha” as his full name. In fact, “Ardmheára” is Irish for Lord Mayor.
The Sinn Fein politician was invited to the city of Ramallah by the Palestinian Authority https://t.co/SMyQ0WArIM
— JOE.ie (@JOEdotie) April 11, 2018
MacDonncha, who is in Ramallah for a conference, was singled out by Israel’s Strategic Affairs Ministry – which oversees the fight against the BDS campaign – for his apparent links with the Ireland Palestine Solidarity Campaign.
(MEMO, PC, Social Media)
