Candlelit paper boats were set adrift in the south Galway harbour of Kinvara late last week at a vigil hosted by the Kinvara Palestine Solidarity Group.
The event, entitled Caoineadh-Lament for Gaza, was held at dusk when many local people assembled at the pier.
Following a brief eulogy from Annie Rosario, a minute’s silence was observed, and then Eugene Lamb, a lone piper, played a lament that echoed across the harbour.
Finola Ó Siochrú sang “Cá bhfuil Mo Mhamaí?, a slow air she wrote to commemorate the children whose families have been killed in the conflict.
Over 27,000 Palestinians have been killed and over 66,000 wounded since Israel began its latest offensive in Gaza four months ago, according to the territory's health ministry.
Ó Siochru's air was followed by a chorus from a women’s group with local people joining in.
Candlelit paper boats were set adrift in the dark, as people held a moment’s silence at Kinvara
Candlelit paper boats were then set adrift on the water, in the dark, as the people again held a moment’s silence.
The event was the latest in a series of solidarity vigils and peace marches held in Kinvara and Galway since October 7th.
During the Israeli war in Gaza in the summer of 2014, Kinvara residents and businesses took a collective stand against Israeli actions by pledging to support the growing boycott movement (known as BDS - Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions) against the state of Israel.
