Repugnant diplomacy on Iranian ambassador Ahmad Sadeghi, Israel’s response

Labor is refusing to expel Iran’s top diplomat in Australia despite the ambassador praising Hassan Nasrallah’s ‘martyrdom’, as Penny Wong fails to say which of Israel’s military actions should be considered acceptable self-defence.

Foreign Minister Penny Wong, Iranian ambassador to Australia Ahmad Sadeghi, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese.

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Labor is refusing to expel Iran’s top diplomat in Australia despite the ambassador praising the “martyrdom” of slain terrorist leader Hassan Nasrallah and calling him a “remarkable leader”, as Foreign Minister Penny Wong fails to say what, if any, of Israel’s military actions should be considered acceptable self-defence.

Divisions between Labor and the Coalition over their positions on Israel deepened on Thursday as Joe Biden voiced the G7’s ­support for the Jewish state’s “right to ­respond” in proportion to Iran’s attacks.

In light of Hezbollah supporters marching through Australian streets last Sunday, the opposition will now push the Albanese government to urgently overhaul the criminal code when parliament returns next week so penalties can be strengthened for those who threaten the use of violence or advocate for terrorism and genocide.

The Australian revealed on Thursday that Iranian ambassador Ahmad Sadeghi had called Nasrallah a “blessed martyr” who had a dignified path to heaven and had described his leadership as an ongoing struggle against “the vile entity of the Zionist regime”.

“Martyrdom is the dignified path of such great men, and nothing else can be expected from them,” Mr Sadeghi said in a social media post on Sunday.

Senator Wong’s spokeswoman condemned the comments, which included describing Nasrallah as a “prominent standard-bearer”, ­despite his decades-long reign of terror in the Middle East.

The spokeswoman added that Australia had maintained a diplomatic relationship with Iran “continuously since 1968” because it was in the national interest, but this was not an endorsement of the nation’s regime.

“In all of that time, it has never been an endorsement of the ­regime; it is a channel to protect Australia’s interests and to communicate the views of Australia and our close partners,” she said.

The Australian asked Senator Wong if the government was considering expelling Mr Sadeghi, as the Coalition had urged, but the spokeswoman did not respond ­directly to the question.

“The Prime Minister and Foreign Minister have made clear that the government condemns any support for terrorist organisations such as Hezbollah,” the spokeswoman said. “We condemn the ambassador’s comments.”

When asked how she would respond to the comments, Senator Wong did not detail any actions she would take such as calling Mr Sagedhi in to give an explanation of his words.

Opposition foreign affairs spokesman Simon Birmingham said it was time for Mr Sadeghi’s invitation to Australia to be withdrawn. “All previous ‘talkings to’ by the Albanese government have been woefully ineffective,” Senator Birmingham said. “The time for nice chats is over and the time for ­Anthony Albanese and Penny Wong to show leadership by ­declaring the Iranian ambassador persona non grata is now.”

Divisions over the ambassador emerged as the government secured 500 seats on two flights from Lebanon to Cyprus on Saturday for citizens, permanent residents and their immediate family members. Australians who remain in Lebanon and want to leave are being urged to take whatever option they can to get out of the country. As of Thursday morning there were about 1700 Australians and immediate family members who had registered with the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade indicating they wanted to leave Lebanon.

An RAAF plane was on standby in Cyprus as part of the government’s contingency plan.

Differences also emerged in the language the US and Australia used in relation to Israel’s right to respond to Iranian and ­Hezbollah attacks, with Mr Biden’s endorsement in contrast to Senator Wong saying only that Israel had “a right to defend itself”.

The US President said the G7 – which also includes Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the UK – agreed there were “things that have to be done” and Iran had gone “way off board”.

“We’ll be discussing with the Israelis what they’re going to do, but … all seven of us agree that they have a right to respond, but they should respond in proportion,” Mr Biden said.

Senator Wong said on Thursday: “Israel has a right to defend ­itself against Iran’s attack. We continue to condemn Iran’s behaviour in the region, its destabilisation of the region, its support for many of the actors in the region, including Hezbollah. I again make the point that we always urge adherence to international law in all of our statements in relation to the Middle East.

“We have been clear that the cycle of violence cannot continue and we have urged all parties to show restraint and de-escalate.”

Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles said Israel and all countries had a right to defend themselves “and to do so in a proportionate way”.

“That said, we are calling for a ceasefire along with the United States, along with other members of the international community,” the Defence Minister told the ABC.

The Australian asked the Prime Minister and Senator Wong if self-defence included: targeted retaliatory strikes against Iran or Syria; Israel disabling Hezbollah infrastructure on the border via bombing or with ground troops; or the elimination of ­terrorist leaders from Hezbollah and Hamas.

The government declined to respond, saying there was nothing further to add to what ­Senator Wong said on Thursday.

Both Senator Wong and Mr Marles held press conferences on Thursday with a focus on the government’s position on Israel on the ABC, while Mr Albanese appeared on two FM radio stations where the Middle East conflict wasn’t discussed.

Peter Dutton accused the Prime Minister of “talking about some sort of an appeasement model” and diminishing Australia’s relationship with Israel and other allies in the process.

Ahead of parliament’s return next week, opposition legal affairs spokeswoman Michaelia Cash and home affairs spokesman James Paterson wrote to their government counterparts on Thursday afternoon, demanding action to strengthen the criminal code as soon as possible and promising bipartisan support for the overhaul.

They also demanded immediate action to deport non-citizens who expressed support – including through public display of flags – for organisations such as Hezbollah and Hamas.

In the letter, obtained by The Australian, the Coalition senators said last week’s demonstrations in Sydney and Melbourne where protesters waved Hezbollah flags must not be repeated on the one-year anniversary of the October 7 massacres in Israel by Hamas.

“We are writing to call on the government to take action to avoid a repeat of the demonstrations which took place on the weekend in our capital cities,” they said.

“Allowing protesters to celebrate with impunity the greatest loss of Jewish lives in a single day since the Holocaust is absolutely untenable, and poses a significant risk to community safety and social cohesion.

“It is incumbent on the government to ensure that the reported demonstrations do not proceed.”

The Coalition senators issued Attorney-General Mark Dreyfus and Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke three demands, including passing the Criminal Code Amendment (Hate Crimes) Bill 2024 through “both houses of parliament next week”.

This bill was introduced in September by Mr Dreyfus partly in response to a rise in hate speech following the October 7 attack last year as well as an increase in the national terrorism threat level to probable. The legislation strengthens offences for those promoting violence while also creating new offences for those threatening the use of force against targeted groups.

The Coalition says the bill must be fast-tracked, noting it is before the legal and constitutional affairs committee for inquiry, with a report not due until December 12. This means the legislation will not be passed this year unless the committee reports early.

The second Coalition demand is for section 80.2HA of the criminal code to be clarified so the “police can charge anyone displaying symbols of listed terrorist organisations.”