EDITORIAL: Key question PM must answer on Palestine plan

Anthony Albanese and his ideologically-aligned mates in the parliaments of the UK, France and Canada share a common goal: peace on earth and goodwill to all mankind.

Don’t we all.

Unfortunately, the rest of us all live in the real world, where things aren’t so simple.

But the Prime Minister and his cadre of left-wing world leaders think they can simply wish this utopia into existence.

Wishful thinking won’t get us there

Their premature support for a Palestinian state will do nothing to bring peace to the Middle East, because it does nothing to deal with the root cause of the conflict: the Hamas terrorists who are determined to annihilate Israel.

Australia’s recognition of Palestine as a sovereign state is unconditional. It doesn’t matter what happens between now and September when the United Nations General Assembly meets; it is going ahead anyway.

And that is the biggest flaw in this plan that is fully of them.

Mr Albanese has repeatedly said that there must be “no role” for Hamas in a sovereign Palestine and that the group must disarm.

But to whom will this task fall? If elections are held in a future Palestinian state, what mechanism will ensure Hamas — which continues to enjoy the support of the majority of Palestinians — do not contest?

Mr Albanese has no answer to these questions, further than some vague references to the need for the Arab League to “play a role”.

The Arab League has already urged Hamas to disarm. It’s had no effect.

Will the League — which includes member nations Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, the UAE and Saudi Arabia — compel them to? How?

This isn’t nit-picking. Unless Hamas is eliminated as a force, Mr Albanese’s dreams of a peaceful Middle East — with a place for a secure Israel within it — are doomed.

Also concerning is the repeated use of the word “ceasefire” by Mr Albanese and others who lecture to Israel.

A “ceasefire” should not be the goal. The goal must be a surrender by Hamas, the terrorist organisation which has held Gaza hostage for two decades.

Meanwhile, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has told Mr Albanese in no uncertain terms what he thinks of Australia’s recognition of Palestine.

“History will remember Albanese for what he is: A weak politician who betrayed Israel and abandoned Australia’s Jews,” Mr Netanyahu wrote on X.

That remark, and a scathing letter sent to Mr Albanese by Mr Netanyahu, show that relations between Australia and Israel are at their lowest ever ebb.

Mr Albanese’s response was that he didn’t “take these things personally”.

But he should take it seriously.

A peaceful and secure Middle East is a noble goal and one which all parties, with the exception of Hamas and its backers, are striving for.

But wishful thinking won’t get us there. To make it a reality, the world needs an answer to the question of how to neutralise Hamas.

When Mr Albanese and his co-supporters for a sovereign Palestine come up with one, the rest of the world can take them seriously.

Responsibility for the editorial comment is taken by Editor-in-Chief Christopher Dore.