Gaza threatens to split ALP in flashpoint talks

The Victorian ALP faces a toxic debate and potential split ­between factions at next month’s state conference that Anthony Albanese is expected to attend.

Photos of kidnap victims on display in Israel shortly after the October 7 terror attack by Hamas. Picture: Getty Images

The Victorian ALP faces a toxic debate and potential split ­between the party’s pro-Israel and pro-Palestine factions at next month’s state conference that Prime Minister Anthony Albanese is expected to attend.

Labor’s first major state policy-setting talks since the Hamas terror attack against Israel on October 7 shapes as a flashpoint with party figures warning debate over the war could spark bitter ­divisions.

One Labor MP said any split over the Israel-Gaza war could “put another rock in the Prime Minister’s knapsack” while a senior Israel-supporting party member warned the tensions had the potential to embarrass Jacinta Allan, who will be attending her first state conference as Premier.

“It would be a lot better for the party if the resolution gets ­defused. It’s not a great look,” the Labor MP told The Australian.

“Ultimately, whatever the resolution says, it’s not going to change federal policy. And in some ways the more absurd the resolution the less impact it will have.

“But it does show this debate is ricocheting around the Labor Party and that’s not good. And an absurd resolution will embolden the Greens and the enemies of Labor. We have a real issue here.”

The Australian has confirmed a strongly-worded resolution is being considered by members of the ALP’s dominant Socialist Left faction in support of Palestinians. While sources said the final wording of the resolution was still being debated, they expected it to be highly critical of Israel’s military operation in Gaza, raise the issue of Jewish settlements and demand the Australian government backs international legal action that has accused Israel of genocide.

Labor’s internal support for ­Israel is strongest in the right wing of the party and despite being in the minority, figures are vowing not to back down during the May 17-18 state conference at Moonee Valley Racecourse.

“If they (the pro-Palestinian faction) push it (a split is) 100 per cent likely. There will be no ­retreat, no surrender,” said one member of the pro-Israel group.

Palestinian women and children walk past the ruins of buildings destroyed by Israeli bombardment in Gaza City on Monday. Picture: AFP

A Palestinian-Israel showdown threatens to be a major challenge for the Prime Minister if he, as Victorian ALP chiefs expect, attends the conference. Mr Albanese’s office has been approached by The Australian for comment. Ms Allan declined to comment, with her office saying the issue was a matter for the ALP.

Senior federal Labor MPs have recently become involved in trying to defuse the internal row, but some in the party believe events in Gaza are so volatile that they have overrun the ability to strike a compromise.

“The Left has the numbers, so it’s really about whether there are backroom conversations and some of the extreme voices can be talked out of (it),” one member said.

One left-wing Labor member confirmed there were attempts being made to strike a compromise ahead of the conference. “I’ll play a mediating role to try and get to a place where our Palestinian members and our Jewish members and their supporters feel they both have a voice,” the member said.

In a bid to counter the left-wing support for Palestinians in the ALP, pro-Israel party members established the Labor Friends of Israel (LFI) group in the wake of the October 7 terror attacks that left about 1200 Israelis dead and sparked the war that has been raging for six months and claimed thousands of Palestinian lives.

A baby stroller, along with other personal belongings are left on the side of the road next to a car after multiple civilians were killed on October 7 in an attack by Hamas terrorists. Picture: Getty Images

The LFI’s website states: “We celebrate Israel’s record as a beacon of democracy, the rule of law and protector of minority rights in the Middle East. We stand with all Israelis who seek to realise and expand the goal of equality set out in Israel’s Declaration of Independence.

“We recognise that Israel is the only country founded as a socialist enterprise and celebrate the enduring fraternal relationship between the Australian and Israeli Labor parties.”

The LFI states it is “immensely proud of Australian Labor’s longstanding commitment to, and support for, the Jewish people’s right to self-determination in their historic homeland and the State of Israel”.

The website continues: “As well as our relationship with Israel, Jewish Australians – some of whom arrived on the First Fleet in 1788 – have played a significant and positive role in all ­aspects of multicultural Australian life, from politics and the ALP, trade unions, business, philanthropy, the law, science and medicine, academia, journalism and creative arts. Through these friendships and traditions, we seek to encourage members of the Jewish community to support the Australian Labor Party.

“We seek to engage with all party members and supporters across Australia to ensure Labor maintains this long friendship and the ALP’s sensible policy position towards the only nation in the Middle East that shares our party’s values in its commitment to democracy, freedom of association and trade union rights, a free press, a free judiciary, equality of the sexes, the rights and protections for LGBTQIA+ people, and protection of religious and ethnic minorities.

“We promote a vision of peace founded on coexistence, co-operation, and mutual respect and recognition between the Israeli and Palestinian peoples. We support political, economic and civic society initiatives to further the cause of peace and a two-state solution. We advocate for peacebuilders in both Israel and Palestine in their work to achieve these vital goals.

“We support the dismantling of settler outposts. We call for the renunciation of terrorism, violence and incitement. We oppose all attempts to demonise and delegitimise the world’s only Jewish state, and the antisemitism which drives it. As such we reject and campaign against efforts to boycott Israel.”