Social Democrats suspend Limerick native over shares of firm linked to Israeli Defence Forces

THE SOCIAL Democrats have moved to suspend Limerick-born TD Eoin Hayes.

It comes after the newly Dublin Bay South deputy was forced to correct the record over his involvement in Palantir, a controversial software firm which serviced the Israeli Defence Forces (IDF).

Earlier this Tuesday, Mr Hayes - educated at Castletroy College - had said he had disposed of the shares in Palantir before he entered the political arena.

His shareholdings were initially revealed by the Irish Daily Mail newspaper.

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But in a statement, he has moved to correct the record, confirming the 7,000 shares he held in the company were sold in July 2024.

This was around a month after he was first elected as a Social Democrats councillor in the capital.

Now, the deputy leader of the Social Democrats Cian O'Callaghan confirmed Mr Hayes is suspended from its parliamentary party with immediate effect.

"This is a serious matter. It is imperative that the media, who hold politicians to account on behalf of the public, can rely on the information they receive from elected representatives," he added.

Mr Hayes had said he had previously worked for Palantir in internal operations in areas like human resources and information technology when he was living in the USA.

"I worked for Palantir between 2015 and 2017 in internal operations, in areas like HR and IT, when I lived in the United States. I had absolutely no role in anything related to any military contracts, for the Israeli military or anyone else. As part of my salary package, I was provided with shares. The conditions attaching to those shares meant I was unable to sell them until 2021, six months after the company had gone public," he said.

Mr Hayes acnowledged as Palantir's support for the Israeli military increased this year and the firm signed a new strategic partnership, he should have sold his shares then.

"I deeply regret I did not. I had 7,000 shares in the company, all of which dated from my employment nearly a decade ago, and sold them in July 2024 for a pre-tax figure of €199,000," he confirmed.