Taoiseach Leo Varadkar has defended a tweet about the release of Emily Hand that’s at the centre of a diplomatic storm between Israel and Ireland. 

He was slammed by Israel’s Foreign Minister Eli Cohen over his post on X, formerly Twitter, where he referred to Emily as “an innocent child who was lost and has now returned” after she was released by Hamas. 

Speaking to Ciara this morning was Eylon Levy, Israeli Government spokesperson, and Jennifer Carroll MacNeill, Minister of State at the Department of Finance.