Tensions over Israel-Hamas war loom over Irish Taoiseach’s usually jovial annual visit to White House

Washington CNN — St. Patrick’s Day at the White House is ordinarily a moment for celebration, with the fountains dyed green and a crystal bowl of shamrocks exchanged as a symbol of friendly ties between the United States and Ireland. Meeting over breakfast earlier Friday morning with Vice President Kamala Harris, Varadkar said the humanitarian crisis in Gaza “will haunt us all for years to come.” He said the Irish “know how quickly atrocities could lead to calls for vengeance, creating new cycles of hatred and bitterness.” And he praised Harris’s forceful recent calls for an “immediate ceasefire” in Gaza, which he said “showed great courage.” “I’m sure it can’t have been easy, but it was the right thing to do,” he said. Speaking ahead of the meeting, neither Irish nor White House officials said they expected it to be hostile or tense, and Varadkar told reporters in Boston, “I’m not here to tell off or tick him off.” When speaking to a luncheon on Capitol Hill later Friday, Biden said, “We had a meeting earlier today, I told you that I’m deeply grateful for Ireland’s unwavering humanitarian aid to the people of not only Ukraine but also Gaza.” Still, the war will make for serious discussion on a visit that, in previous years, was marked more by levity and a robust celebration of Biden’s deep roots in Ireland. In November, Varadkar said Israel’s response to the Hamas terror attacks resembled “something approaching revenge.” Traveling in Boston this week, Varadkar condemned the Hamas terror attacks on October 7 that prompted the current war. There are historic ties as well: the early-20th century British foreign secretary Arthur Balfour, who earlier in his career served as chief secretary for Ireland and opposed Irish home rule, promised in 1917 the UK would support “the establishment in Palestine of a national home for the Jewish people.” The strongly held views in support of Palestinian civilians and disapproval over Biden’s handling of the conflict led some political parties in Ireland to announce they would not send representatives to the St. Patrick’s Day event at the White House.