Roads in and out of Shannon Airport were today blocked by anti-war protestors who object to the facility being used by the US military.
An estimated crowd of around 1,200 protestors had them sealed off by about 2pm.
Cairde Palestine Belfast and Mothers Against Genocide also helped organise today’s protest, which is to be followed by another one on Sunday.
It is not known the extent to which military aid is being transported to Israel via Shannon.
But according to Shanonwatch, one of the organizers of today’s protest, there were “at least” three US warplanes at Shannon Airport on Friday.
These were, according to the protest group, a US Navy Hercules C130J which arrived from the Naval Air Station New Orleans, Louisiana and stayed two nights before taking off again on Friday “heading SE towards the Middle East”.
They also included a US Navy Boeing C40 Clipper, which is a military version of the Boeing 737 Next Generation jet planes and is usually used to transport cargo and passengers.
The plane also arrived early in the morning from the Naval Air Station New Orleans, Louisiana.
The third plane, an Omni Air N819AX on contract to the US military, arrived on 9 Oct about 04.30am from Fort Worth Dallas TX.
It took off again the same day about 12.30pm “heading SE towards the Middle East”.
“This is just one of the reasons why the protest at Shannon Airport this weekend is important,” the protest group said on its website.
Politicians who attended the protest today included People Before Profit TD Richard Boyd Barrett.
The US is Israel’s major arms supporter, having given it €16.3bn in aid since Israeli started retaliating against Hamas and Hezbollah after the October 7 attacks by Hamas on southern Israel.
Bomb detonators used in airstrikes, explosives and .338 sniper bullets are among the at least 50-70 tonnes of military supplies being shipped through Irish and UK airspace on flights from JFK International Airport in New York.
Flights are known, according to research by digital news sites such as The Ditch and Declassified UK and the French-speaking public broadcaster RTBF, to have flown over Ireland and Wales before exiting via Dover.
The Challenge Airlines Group flights then passed through Liège, Belgium – before they were banned in May this year from carrying munitions for Israel’s war machine – before reaching Tel Aviv.
A spokesperson for the airport said: “A protest which took place this afternoon on the outskirts of the airport grounds has concluded.
“We are pleased to confirm that throughout the protest, there were no disruptions to airport operations.
“An Garda Síochána implemented planned road diversions, which allowed passengers to access the airport without issue, despite traffic operating on one lane.
“A shuttle bus service was also in operation, transporting some passengers to the terminal building.
“Passengers had been advised via the airport’s social media channels in the days leading up to the event to allow extra time for their journey.
“All flights at the airport operated on schedule, and there were no delays or cancellations as a result of the event.”
