Labor brands Israeli conduct in Gaza ‘indefensible’ after 28-nation statement

Israel has labelled the Albanese government as ‘disconnected from reality’ after Australia joined with 27 other countries to condemn the ‘horrifying’ killing of Palestinians.

Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke, centre, at the first Labor caucus meeting in Canberra on Monday. Picture: NewsWire / Martin Ollman

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One of the Albanese government’s most senior ministers has lashed Israel’s conduct in Gaza as “indefensible” after Australia joined with 27 other countries to condemn the “horrifying” killing of Palestinians and demand an immediate end to the war.

Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke said the statement – branded “disgusting” by the US’s top diplomat in Israel – was Australia’s strongest since the war began, reflecting the scale of the humanitarian disaster in the territory.

“We’ve seen too many images of children being killed, of horrific slaughter, of churches being bombed,” Mr Burke told the ABC. “None of this changes the fact that the hostages need to be released, of course that needs to happen. But what we are watching on the other side of the world is indefensible. The hostages still need to be released, but the war needs to end.”

The statement, signed by Foreign Minister Penny Wong and backed by the UK, Japan, New Zealand, and a raft of European nations, said Israel’s “drip feeding” of aid into Gaza was dangerous and unacceptable, and warned its plan to remove Palestinians from the territory would breach international law. “The suffering of civilians in Gaza has reached new depths,” it said.

Israeli Ambassador to Australia, Amir Maimon. Picture: Martin Ollman

“We urge the parties and the international community to unite in a common effort to bring this terrible conflict to an end, through an immediate, unconditional and permanent ceasefire. Further bloodshed serves no purpose.”

US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee blasted the statement on social media, saying Israel wasn't to blame for the conflict. “Disgusting! 25 nations (later 28) put pressure on Israel instead of savages of Hamas! Gaza suffers for 1 reason: Hamas rejects EVERY proposal. Blaming Israel is irrational,” he wrote on X.

Israel’s top diplomat in Australia, Amir Maimon, responded in a social media post: “Israel rejects the joint statement published by a group of countries, including Australia, as it is disconnected from ­reality and sends the wrong message to Hamas.”

The statement came as hundreds of protesters rallied outside Parliament House in Canberra, holding dolls shrouded in white cloth, representing babies killed in the Palestinian territory.

The UN said 875 people had been killed in Gaza since July 13 while trying to get food, including 674 in the vicinity of new Israeli-controlled aid hubs that have been widely criticised by the inter­national community.

A man and woman ride in a donkey-drawn cart along Salah al-din road in the central Gaza Strip. Picture: AFP

Opposition Leader Sussan Ley said while the Coalition wanted to “see aid reach those who deserve it”, it was Hamas’s responsibility to release its hostages and allow aid to reach civilians.

“There are still hostages in Gaza, there are still hostages hidden in tunnels, and a way to end the situation is for those hostages to be released by the terrorists Hamas who control so much of the activity there,” she said.

The Executive Council of Australian Jewry said Israel wanted an end to the war “but that can only happen with the release of the 50 hostages and assurances that Hamas will not retain effective control over Gaza”.

“There is immense suffering right now, which cannot be denied,” ECAJ president Daniel Aghion said. “The solution is the permanent removal of the terrorist force that started this war and their release of all hostages.

“Anything less would guarantee a return to war and further suffering… All sides need a ceasefire but we (must) ensure this is the last Israel-Hamas war.”

The Australia Palestine Advocacy Network said the statement was “dangerously insufficient and months too late”.

“The time for these statements has long passed. People are starving to death because Israel refuses to allow aid into the hellscape it created in Gaza. Families are being bombed and gunned down while trying to access water,” APAN president Nasser Mashni said.

“If Australia has even a shred of moral courage left, it must act now – with sanctions akin to the 1400 sanctions it imposed on Russia, with a two-way arms embargo, and with unequivocal support for international accountability for the genocidal rogue state of Israel through the International Criminal Court and International Court of Justice.”