Irish couple take on mighty walk from Donegal 'to the Capital for the People of Palestine'

A retired couple from Ardara, County Donegal who felt compelled to take action on the ongoing Israeli bombardment of Palestine are undertaking a ‘Walk to the Capital.’

Former local GP, Dr Mireille Sweeney and her husband John came up with the idea only days before setting off.

Mireille told Donegal Live: “If we had thought about it, we would have been thinking about what to bring, what to do, so we just decided to set off.”

John explains why it is a Walk to the Capital rather than to Dublin.

“It can work in any country,” he said. “Other people can do the same thing in their own countries. We have seen this throughout history, in France, in England. Walking to the Capital is a very strong message.”

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Their walk has already captured the imagination of people in Mireille’s native France.

The couple set off on Friday, July 26 and walked as far as Donegal Town.

Day two saw them head to Pettigo, and onwards to Enniskillen on day three, travelling the same route as thousands of match-goers. 

They are en route to Belturbett on day four. 

Having been following news reports of the humanitarian crisis in Palestine over the last years and months, John explains why they were finally spurred into action.

“Mireille and myself have been driving to go for a swim every morning at 8 o’clock and as we were driving down, there would always be a feature on the news about Palestine and about various people’s reactions and opinions,” he said. 

“They would always have maybe a professional healthcare worker or an NGO worker on as well, and they have been telling us, ‘there is going to be a famine here’ but still, they would be quite professional.

“But I just really noticed this week that they were practically crying as they were relaying their information.”

With Mireille’s background in medicine, she has been acutely aware of the huge challenges being faced by medical workers. 

They want to stress that their goal is to call on the Irish government to take a strong stance in relation to trade with Israel with a view to putting the country under pressure to stop the ongoing bombing and withholding humanitarian aid. 

“The Irish government is following the EU line,” said John. “But what we need is for them to stand up and say no, to refuse to trade with Israel even if it means facing sanctions. I believe that if one government does that, others will quickly follow.

“They need to take a meaningful stance against the targeting of innocent people, of children, of healthcare workers,” said John. “And they need to get the aid through the border. There is no shortage of aid, it is just not getting in and that is leading to famine.”

John and Mireille’s frustration and sadness at the Palestine situation is evident.

“We cannot get our heads around how the governments of the world can allow this to keep happening,” said John.

“I have been feeling a growing anger, but now that we have started walking, the anger is subsiding because we feel like we are doing something.

“If anyone would like to join us along the way, they would be most welcome, especially for arriving in Dublin.”

The couple have set up an Instagram jmwalk4gaza account where you can follow their progress.