Overview
- Maurice Cohen said he booked about 70 rooms for delegates to the SECCA conference and disclosed the cancellation at a Department of Foreign Affairs reception on Oct. 13.
- Organizers and former justice minister Alan Shatter say the Herbert Park Hotel confirmed the booking in April, met with organizers on May 7, then emailed on May 8 saying higher management would not host the event.
- Multiple news outlets corroborated organizers’ account that hotel staff asked if the meeting had any connection to the Israel Defense Forces before the rooms were released.
- The hotel has not given a public explanation and has referred media inquiries to its corporate management while delegates were rebooked elsewhere and the SECCA meeting went ahead in Dublin on Oct. 12–14.
- Jewish leaders condemned the episode as an example of contemporary antisemitism and said it highlights wider concerns about rising antisemitic incidents in Ireland and ongoing tensions in Ireland–Israel relations, leading to calls for the hotel to clarify its decision and for management training or a review.