Cllr. Maurice Mo Dockrell Fine Gael

https://www.state.gov/releases/office-of-the-spokesperson/2026/06/joint-statement-on-iranian-state-threat-activity-in-europe-north-america-and-australia

Delighted to see Ireland join our international partners in signing the Joint Statement on Iranian State Threat Activity. It is a critical step forward that Ireland has formally recognised the serious threat the IRGC et al pose to the security of Europe and our own state.
But a signature is only the beginning. It is now time to back words with action. Ireland needs to do more.
I am calling on the Irish Government to take immediate steps:
Proscribe and ban the IRGC, including any operatives currently operating under diplomatic cover from the Iranian Embassy.
Engage directly by meeting with Iranian Diaspora groups to support those fleeing this regime's transnational repression.
We must stand firmly against state-sponsored terror.

Joint Statement on Iranian State Threat Activity in Europe, North America and Australia - United States Department of State The following statement is released by the governments of the United States of America, the United Kingdom, Albania, Australia, Belgium, Bulgaria, Canada, Czechia, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Latvia, Lithuania, the Netherlands, New Zealand, North Macedonia, Norway, Portuga...

The Irish government’s decision last week to accept the credentials of the new Iranian ambassador is a deeply disappointing step.

I represent the Blackrock ward within Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown. This is perhaps Ireland’s most liberal constituency. The continued presence of this embassy on Mount Merrion Avenue, within Blackrock ward, flies directly in the face of everything our local community holds dear.

Last week’s confirmation that President Catherine Connolly has accepted the credentials of Ambassador Eshagh Alhabib at Áras an Uachtaráin is both premature and unnecessary. There is no possible foreign policy gain for Ireland, nor any downside to refusing accreditation. The formal ceremony was originally postponed in January due to the severe crackdown by Iranian authorities on nationwide demonstrations that resulted in an estimated 40,000 deaths of unarmed civilians.

Since that time, the domestic situation in Iran has not stabilised in a manner that justifies normalisation. What has changed in the last six months? The state-sponsored slaughter has not ceased. Executions have accelerated. The Islamic State continues to rely on arbitrary trials and severe human rights violations to suppress dissent. To grant full diplomatic standing to the regime's emissary at this juncture overlooks these ongoing human rights violations.

While maintaining channels of communication is a standard aspect of international relations, this situation requires a different standard. The Islamic Republic is not merely a state with different customs or competing national interests. It is a clerical dictatorship operating as a global enterprise of terror. That the Islamic Republic’s praetorian guard, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps’ (IRGC), has been designated as a terrorist entity by the European Union should carry clear consequences for how its state representatives are received. By providing full accreditation, Ireland is offering a veneer of legitimacy to an administration actively engaged in state-sponsored violence.

There is a serious and persistent fear among the Iranian Irish community that the IRGC continues to operate from within the embassy itself. I have been contacted by members of the Iranian diaspora who feel utterly let down by this supine act of appeasement. Some of those I have spoken to have either suffered themselves directly at the hands of the Islamic Republic or have had friends and relatives tortured, r***d or murdered.

Moving forward with standard diplomatic pageantry while these blatant human rights violations continue is highly problematic. Ireland had an opportunity to provide firm leadership within the European Union by standing consistently with those advocating for fundamental democratic freedoms, as we have done elsewhere. We could have demonstrated that a small nation built on the struggle for self-determination stands firmly with those fighting for democracy. We could and should have led with courage, not settled for business as usual.

https://dublinpeople.com/news/southside/articles/2026/03/13/councillor-calls-for-iranian-ambassador-to-be-expelled/

The Mullah regime in Iran has oppressed and continues to oppress its people, destabilise the region and embrace its nuclear ambitions. It is one of the most serious threats to international security. The EPP Group condemns this barbaric regime. 

In these perilous times we stand with and support the Iranian people who deserve better. The Iranian people are exhausted by a 47-year-long regime that treated them as domestic enemies. We demand a stop to any further repression against them. 

On-going events could lead to a democratic transition in Iran that will fully reflect the Iranian people’s desire for a better, stable and prosperous future in peaceful coexistence with its neighbours.

I note reports that the United States has undertaken military action against targets in Iran.
While any escalation of conflict is serious, responsibility for the present situation ultimately lies with the Iranian regime, whose destabilising activities, support for armed proxies, and sustained repression of its own people have brought the region repeatedly to the brink of wider conflict.
Iran remains a theocratic and totalitarian regime which denies its citizens basic freedoms and has responded to peaceful democratic protest with imprisonment, torture, sexual violence and death. Many Iranians continue to risk everything in pursuit of democracy and liberty. In that context, the weakening and ultimate replacement of this regime by the Iranian people themselves is paramount if lasting stability, peace, and freedom are to emerge in the region.
As the councillor in whose ward the Iranian Embassy is located, I wish to reiterate my support for the Iranian people and their legitimate aspiration for democracy and freedom. I sincerely hope that civilian casualties are minimised. Indeed, the greatest and most enduring risk to the Iranian people has long come from their own government.