The First Minister of Northern Ireland, Michelle O’Neill, announced today on social media that she’s decided not to accept an invitation to attend St. Patrick’s Day events at the White House.
O’Neill, who also serves as the Vice President of Sinn Féin, wrote: “I have taken the decision not to attend this year’s St. Patrick’s Day events at the White House due to the situation in the Gaza Strip and West Bank.”
She added: “I deeply value the historic relationship between Ireland and the United States, and I remain committed to working with U.S. figures to strengthen our peace and grow our economy. However, despite the hopes and promise offered by the ceasefire agreement in Gaza, horrific Israeli military attacks continue. I cannot and will not look away from systematic human rights abuses and flagrant breaches of international law by Israel. It is my responsibility as a political leader to stand firmly on the side of humanity.”
I have taken the decision not to attend this year’s St. Patrick’s Day events at the White House due to the situation in the Gaza Strip and West Bank.
I deeply value the historic relationship between Ireland and the United States, and I remain committed to working with U.S.…
— Michelle O’Neill (@moneillsf) February 16, 2026
At the Munich Security Conference this weekend in Germany, U.S. Senator Chris Murphy (D-CT) also lamented the ongoing war in Gaza, characterizing the ceasefire as an illusion. Murphy, one of President Donald Trump’s fiercest critics in the Senate, said: “There is no ceasefire in Gaza. The assault continues. Palestinians continue to die. And Trump is issuing glossy brochures about fake future Gaza real estate deals instead of working to end the war.”
At the Munich Security Conference this weekend, I told a hard truth. There is no ceasefire in Gaza. The assault continues. Palestinians continue to die. And Trump is issuing glossy brochures about fake future Gaza real estate deals instead of working to end the war. pic.twitter.com/hg2sBrmdiz
— Chris Murphy
(@ChrisMurphyCT) February 15, 2026
Note: Also in Munich, Trump’s Secretary of State Marco Rubio claimed credit for the “fragile truce” in Gaza — the same truce O’Neill and Murphy challenged — saying the U.N. “could not solve the war in Gaza. Instead, it was American leadership that freed captives from barbarians and brought about a fragile truce.”
SECRETARY RUBIO: The United Nations still has tremendous potential to be a tool for good in the world but we cannot ignore that on the most pressing matters before us, it has no answers and has played virtually no role. pic.twitter.com/LTdhelP8Sc
— Department of State (@StateDept) February 14, 2026
Seeking to emphasize the intertwined history of the U.S. and Europe, especially the English-speaking people, Rubio mentioned O’Neill’s Ulster during his speech on Saturday. (The majority of the counties making up Ulster, the historically Protestant province made up largely of Scots-Irish descent, are in Northern Ireland.)
Celebrating the historical links, Rubio said: “Our first colonies were built by English settlers, to whom we owe not just the language we speak but the whole of our political and legal system.” He added: “Our frontiers were shaped by Scots-Irish – that proud, hearty clan from the hills of Ulster that gave us Davy Crockett and Mark Twain and Teddy Roosevelt and Neil Armstrong.”