Statement by President Higgins following the death of Aidan O’Leary

Statement by President Higgins following the death of Aidan O'Leary

Date: Thu 8th Aug, 2024 | 13:08

"It is with the deepest sadness that so many people, and particularly those working to help some of the most vulnerable on our planet, will have learned of the sudden passing of Aidan O'Leary.

Aidan O'Leary was a wonderful person who dedicated his life to helping those living in the most difficult, war-torn parts of the world.

Aidan's vital contributions included, but were not limited to, his work as Deputy Director of Operations for UNRWA in Gaza, as Head of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) in Yemen, Afghanistan, Syria and Iraq, and in his most recent position as Director of the World Health Organisation's Polio Eradication Programme.

May I join in the deep appreciation that has been expressed to Aidan by the Director General of the WHO, Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, when he so rightly described Aidan as an outstanding humanitarian who embodied the ideal of service and solidarity across people and borders.

It is with the most remote and vulnerable people on the planet that Aidan worked, and it is amongst those people that he will be remembered the most and his legacy of work most cherished.

May I extend my deepest sympathies to Aidan's wife Karen, to his children Darragh and Eimear, to his brother Art with whom I worked during his term as Secretary General to the President, to his sister Detective Chief Superintendent Jo O'Leary, and to all of his wider family, friends and colleagues who I know are feeling such shock at his unexpected loss.

Síocháin síoraí dá anam lách uasal."