The bodies of six Israeli hostages have been recovered from Gaza.
According to military officials, they were killed by Hamas as forces closed in on their location.
Some families of remaining hostages have called for a widespread protest to put pressure on the Israeli Prime Minister to make a deal with militants.
Sharone Lifschitz, whose father Oded is one of those still missing, has blamed Benjamin Netanyahu for his handling of the crisis, calling him an “enemy of the people of Israel” who is engaged in a “dance of death.”
President Michael D. Higgins said in a statement:
“As images appear in the media of the six hostages whose bodies have been recovered in Gaza, one’s heart can only go out to their families who now have to carry what must be an unbearable grief in addition to the agony which they have faced since their abduction eleven months ago.
“All of this killing must stop. Piling the dead upon the dead is a hopeless strategy when what is needed is an engagement with current and long neglected issues that will enable life to be made possible for all in the region.
“As the international community looks on, they must insist that it is time for all remaining hostages to be released by Hamas, for an immediate ceasefire, for a serious exchange of prisoners to take place, and for all necessary aid to be provided to those who need it.”
Taoiseach Simon Harris has described the deaths as “heartbreaking” while also calling for an immediate ceasefire between Hamas and Israel.
Tánaiste Micheál Martin said that Ireland has repeatedly condemned all those who hold hostages, and has repeated his call for their immediate release.
Meanwhile, serious concerns are being raised about the delivery of polio vaccines to the children of Gaza.
Daily eight-hour pauses in fighting begin today for several days to allow the UN to administer vaccinations to over 640,000 children in the region.
It comes after a baby was paralysed by the disease last week, the first reported case in Gaza for 25 years.
According to Unicef, over 2,100 health workers and community outreach workers have been trained as queues continue to build outside centres.
