Irish EU Parliament Worker Refused Entry to Israel Over West Bank Volunteer Plans

Ben Gurion Airport Denials Target Irish Passport Holders Traveling for West Bank Olive Harvest

Three Irish citizens, including a European Parliament staffer, were refused entry to Israel over the weekend after border security flagged their Irish passports and intended travel to the West Bank. Manus Carlisle, a 33-year-old press officer for The Left political group in the European Parliament from County Clare, traveled from Brussels to Ben Gurion Airport alongside his Dutch partner, Myrthe Bovendeaard. According to reporting by The Journal, Carlisle had taken three weeks off work to volunteer with an organization supporting rural Palestinian communities affected by settler violence during the annual olive harvest season.

While Ireland is a visa-exempt country allowing general border permits for travelers, Carlisle stated that his Irish passport functioned as an immediate red flag for airport security personnel. The denial-of-entry documents issued to Carlisle and his partner state they were refused on public security, safety, and public order grounds, as well as efforts to prevent illegal immigration. Similar reasons were given to two other Irish men whom Carlisle met in the deportation holding area after those travelers had their phones searched upon arrival.

Border Interrogations and Security Profiling at Tel Aviv

The refusal process involved multiple rounds of questioning spanning 20 hours from initial detention to boarding an exit flight. Carlisle described undergoing an initial 15-minute inquiry followed by a five-hour wait, after which he and his partner were moved to a private room for a second, more detailed conversation.

Carlisle reported that the interrogator told him that security services monitored his background closely, stating, “We know that you hate Israel, and we know that you’re involved in some bad organisations that hate Israel too.” Carlisle said the border guards explicitly linked his nationality to political friction, stating that whenever authorities see an Irish passport, they view it as originating from an anti-Israel country.

During the questioning, officials brought up young international volunteers arriving for the olive harvest season to “bring the fight to bad people,” a phrase officers interpreted as targeting settlers, while noting that such matters should be left to the authorities. Carlisle was also questioned about Northern Ireland’s peace process and what actions he would have taken if he were an Israeli citizen on October 7. At the conclusion, an officer advised him to show empathy and listen when speaking with Israeli citizens before handing down the formal entry refusal.

Wider Restrictions on Volunteers and Foreign Reporters

The recent denials align with broader immigration enforcement measures affecting foreign nationals seeking to enter Palestinian territories. Five days prior to the incident, Israeli authorities detained approximately 80 volunteers from the United States, Britain, and Israel who were assisting Palestinians with the olive harvest near Bethlehem.

Official Irish travel advisories explicitly note that immigration authorities possess the authority to deny entry to individuals who have publicly advocated for boycotts of Israel and West Bank settlements, or who maintain affiliations with organizations supporting such actions. Past enforcement includes the refusal of entry to Irish MEP and Left group member Lynn Boylan, who attempted to enter the country as part of an official European Parliament delegation. The Association for Civil Rights in Israel recently filed an appeal with the Population and Immigration Authority regarding a documented increase in foreign journalists being denied entry at the border.

Future Travel Restrictions for Deported Workers

For Carlisle, the practical consequence of the border refusal is a requirement for pre-approval on any future attempts to travel to the country, a procedural hurdle he believes effectively bars his return. He noted that the decision severs his connection to friends and networks built during multiple prior visits, which included Arabic language courses and trips to the West Bank.

As other international aid volunteers and media personnel face similar rejections at Ben Gurion Airport, Israeli authorities have not yet issued a detailed public statement specifically addressing the profiling allegations raised by the Irish citizens.

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