Thread by @GarySpedding

Contrary to disinformation over Herzog Park, being peddled by anti-Palestinian influencers and Israel advocacy, there is a whole rationale behind efforts to remove the name Herzog from the Park in Rathgar that have absolutely nothing to do with 'erasing Irish Jewish history' 🧵

The trigger for Dublin City Council to look at removing the name Herzog from the Park has been a petition launched almost two years ago by Irish Sport for Palestine, 1815 F.C. and 1916 Societies who seek to rename the park after little Hind Rajab.

(Link: ) change.org/p/rename-herzo…

Opposition to the park continuing to bare the name Herzog is clearly laid out in the petition itself.

It cites Chaim Herzog's emigration to mandatory Palestine and joining the Haganah paramilitary organisation in 1935, his subsequent role in the IDF, and his role in the Nakba.

After reviewing the report dated 24th November 2025 (attached) I decided to look more closely at the background to Dublin City Council's own decision making process regarding the decision to review, and subsequently the push to remove, the name Herzog from the Park in Rathgar.

The matter was first raised by @CllrFiConnelly (@labour) at the South East Area committee on 9th December 2024.

No mention of the public petition was made at this stage, but rather, it was suggested the original naming of the park back in 1995 did not follow correct procedures.

The procedure on naming of a public space, such as a park, was revised in 2017. The current policy can be found here:

My question arising from this is whether a policy adopted in 2017 can be retroactively applied to a naming decision made in 1995? dublincity.ie/sites/default/…

It would also be useful if @CllrFiConnelly would release any correspondence they received regarding her motion brought before the South East Area Committee and for details of the advice received back from the Commemorations and Naming Committee to be published.

Next up is the decision of the Commemorations and Naming Committee itself in their meeting held on 24th July 2025 - which appears to be when the discussion was held regarding the renaming of the park and also where the action was agreed vis-a-vis removing the name itself.

Up to this point the matter has been discussed as a procedural matter relating to the rules on naming public spaces in commemoration of a person.

However, a separate but interlinked track was being raised at Dublin City Council that directly refers to the aforementioned petition

Both the question by @ConorReddy95 (@pb4p) & a motion by Cllr. Kourtney Kenny (@sinnfeinireland) were submitted at the January 6th 2025 Dublin City Council meeting.

Both the question and the motion lay out the clear and legitimate concerns regarding Chaim Herzog.

It is made very clear from the outset that the issues being raised here are focused on whether it is appropriate for a public space in Dublin to commemorate such a divisive figure as Chaim Herzog.

This is an entirely legitimate issue to discuss and consider.

Of course it is absolutely correct to acknowledge that figures such as Chaim Herzog hold an important place in the history of Ireland's Jewish community.

This does not change the fact that there are legitimate concerns surrounding the appropriateness of naming a park after him.

Another aspect not being discussed is that the the decision to honour Chaim Herzog by naming the park in Rathgar after him was tied to the tri-millennium of Jerusalem - which was declared by the Israeli government in 1996 as a way of solidifying Israel's hold over Jerusalem.

There is no reason that Dublin City Council should continue to 'honour' a man who actively participated in the destruction & ethnic cleansing of Palestine in the 1947-48 Nakba, oversaw the occupation of the West Bank & East Jerusalem in 1967 and worked for IDF intelligence.

We are witnessing a concentrated campaign by Israel advocacy to label the proposed decision to remove Herzog's name from the Park as being antisemitic and that this proves beyond any doubt that Ireland is an institutionally antisemitic country.

Of course none of the people alleging antisemitism over this decision want to discuss Chaim Herzog being a divisive and controversial figure.

No thought is given to how the Palestinian community in Ireland and around the world feel about all of this either.

I will acknowledge that a row over the name of a park in Rathgar is not among the most useful or significant contributions to the Palestinian cause. Those activists campaigning on this could be putting their energies into far more urgent matters unfolding right now in Palestine.

But the suggestion that the motivation behind the effort to remove Herzog's name is antisemitic or an attempt to erase the history of Irish Jews is just offensive and frankly manipulative. There are many legitimate reasons to object to a public space 'honouring' Chaim Herzog.