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The sons of Chaim Herzog, Isaac and Michael, with their families, at the Herzog Park in Dublin, 2018.
The sons of Chaim Herzog, Isaac and Michael, with their families, at the Herzog Park in Dublin, 2018.
Ireland’s premier, Micheál Martin, urged Dublin City Council to withdraw their proposal to rename the city’s Herzog Park “in its entirety.”
In a post on X, Martin said the proposal is “a denial of our history,” saying the move could be seen as antisemitic. “It is divisive and wrong,” he said.
Martin added that the contributions of the Irish Jewish community “should always be cherished and generously acknowledged.” The premier also recognized Chaim Herzog’s role in the Irish war of independence.
The proposal to rename Herzog Park should be withdrawn in its entirety and not proceeded with.
Earlier today, Finance Minister and Martin’s deputy, Simon Harris, said he is “completely opposed” to a proposal to remove the name of a former president of Israel from a park in Dublin.
Harris, who served as premier until January, urged Irish leaders to join him in opposing the proposal. “It is wrong,” he said in a social media post, “We are an inclusive Republic. This proposal is offensive to that principle.
Herzog Park in Rathgar, south Dublin, was named in 1995 after Israel’s sixth president, Chaim Herzog, who served as the head of state from 1983 to 1993. He was born in Belfast and lived as a child in Dublin when his father was the chief Rabbi of Ireland. He is the father of Israel’s current president, Isaac Herzog.
On Monday, Dublin city councillors are expected to vote on a motion to rename the park.
The Israeli president’s office said that naming the park after former president Herzog in 1995 “expressed appreciation for his legacy and the deep friendship between the Irish and Jewish peoples,” and that “unfortunately, this relationship has deteriorated in recent years, yet we still hope for the recovery of these important ties.”