PM condemns Hamas as Labor divide on Israel deepens
Anthony Albanese has condemned Hamas and reasserted Australia’s support for a ‘sustainable ceasefire’, as the political split within Labor deepens.
Anthony Albanese has condemned Hamas and reasserted Australia’s support for a “sustainable ceasefire”, as the political split within Labor deepens after two former ministers launched a push against misguided views on the war in Gaza.
In response to a video that purportedly shows a Hamas leader praising Australia, Canada and New Zealand support for a ceasefire, the Prime Minister ramped up his criticism of the terrorist group. “I have contempt for Hamas and I won’t be giving them any publicity, which is what they’re after,” Mr Albanese said.
“Hamas – a terrorist organisation, designated as such – I have contempt for what they did … an unequivocal condemnation of their actions on October 7, where they slaughtered innocent people. And I won’t lend anything positive to say about Hamas and nor should anyone in the Australian media.”
HIs remarks came as one-time federal minister Michael Kelly and former NSW treasurer Eric Roozendaal launched a group, Labor Friends of Israel, to support pro-Israel ALP candidates and share “salient facts” about the war to counter misinformation.
Dr Kelly said the terms “genocide and collective punishment” had been used inaccurately in the debate surrounding Israel’s response to the October 7 attack by Hamas and voiced concerns that “people who claim to be progressive” failed to understand the true nature of Hamas.
Tensions within the party on the Israel conflict have continued to fray after Albanese government ministers Ed Husic and Anne Aly accused Israel of collectively punishing Palestinians.
The Labor Friends of Israel website went live days before a group of about 50 Labor figures, including former NSW premier and foreign minister Bob Carr and sitting state and federal MPs, signed an open letter declaring the human rights of Palestinians had been violated.
NSW Labor MP Mark Buttigieg, who signed the letter, said when asked about LFI’s emergence that the Labor Party included “different perspectives” which reflected the diverse communities in Australia.
He added that the best way to make a positive response to the war from a state level was to “use our multicultural diversity to promote dialogue and harmony”.
“I think it’s more a case of saying, look you’ve had these terrible, terrible acts on October 7 from Hamas, where a whole lot of Israeli citizens, innocent people were killed,” he said.
“But then does that justify killing 20,000 Palestinians? I think the view would be, regardless of whfat terms you use, whether it’s genocide or collective punishment, I think the community would be looking at this and saying we just want the killing of innocent people, whether they’re Israelis or Palestinians, to stop.
“That means that you have to actually pull back, have a ceasefire, sit down and negotiate a way forward otherwise innocent people just keep getting killed.”
NSW Labor MP Anthony D’Adam, who initiated the open letter, said Labor had always pushed for the “peaceful resolution of conflicts” in response to the suggestion that those on the progressive side of politics had strayed into supporting Hamas.
“If Hamas occupied a hospital in Tel Aviv, would the Israeli government blow up the hospital with all its occupants to get Hamas? Of course they wouldn’t,” he said.
“Because it’s disproportionate. The target might be Hamas but there’s always other innocent people who are caught in the crossfire.
“The way that Israel is prosecuting this war, they are using a set of tactical choices that involves civilian deaths and destruction to civilian infrastructure, and to argue that this is the only way for them to prosecute their war against Hamas is nonsense.”
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