Australia’s move to join condemnation of Israel’s actions in Gaza slammed as ‘disconnected from reality’

The Australian Government has joined a global joint statement to end war in Gaza, a move Israel’s ambassador to Australia warns is “disconnected from reality”.

In a statement welcomed by terrorist organisation Hamas, Australia joined 27 other countries, including Five Eyes partners the UK, New Zealand and Canada, to call for urgent end to the war in Gaza, where the suffering of civilians had “reached new depths.”

“The Israeli government’s aid delivery model is dangerous, fuels instability and deprives Gazans of human dignity,” it said.

“We condemn the drip feeding of aid and the inhumane killing of civilians, including children, seeking to meet their most basic needs of water and food. It is horrifying that over 800 Palestinians have been killed while seeking aid.”

Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke told ABC News Breakfast the “images of children being killed, of horrific slaughter, of churches being bombed” were “indefensible.”

“On our own, Australia is not a loud voice or a decisive voice on the other side of the world. But when you can make a statement together with so many other significant powers, then we’re all hoping that there’ll be something that’ll break this,” he said.

“It’s a powerful statement. It’s got countries, powerful countries from all around the world saying the same thing. The slaughter has to end.”

Mr Burke added that “none of this changes the fact that the hostages need to be released,” a call reflected in the statement’s wording that “hostages cruelly held captive by Hamas since 7 October 2023 continue to suffer terribly.”

The call was immediately rebutted by Israel’s Ambassador to Australia Amir Maimon who said “it sends the wrong message to Hamas” – a view echoed by the Coalition’s shadow foreign minister Michaelia Cash, who slammed a “disappointing” attack on Israel that ignored the role of Hamas in the conflict.

Mr Maimon swiftly refuted the international demands, reposting the Israeli Foreign Ministry’s stern criticism of the joint statement as failing to focus pressure on Hamas and recognise the terrorist organisation’s role and responsibility for the situation.

“All statements and all claims should be directed at the only party responsible for the lack of a deal for the release of hostages and a ceasefire: Hamas, which started this war and is prolonging it,” said the full Israeli foreign ministry response.

“Instead of agreeing to a ceasefire, Hamas is busy running a campaign to spread lies about Israel. At the same time, Hamas is deliberately acting to increase friction and harm to civilians who come to receive humanitarian aid.”

The ministry said Israel had repeatedly agreed to a concrete proposal for a ceasefire deal while Hamas “stubbornly refuses” to accept it.

Senator Cash said moral outrage at the situation should instead be directed at Hamas, and while it was important for aid to be able to flow into Gaza that “the right system” must be in place to prevent its interception by the terrorist organisation.

“Hamas could end the suffering of the people of Gaza by freeing the remaining Israeli hostages and laying down their weapons. This war began because of Hamas’s abhorrent attack on Israeli civilians,” she said.

US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee also denounced the joint declaration as “disgusting!”

“25 nations put pressure on @Israel instead of savages of Hamas,” Huckabee wrote on X.

He added, “Gaza suffers for 1 reason: Hamas rejects EVERY proposal. Blaming Israel is irrational.”

Opposition leader Sussan Ley added her voice to calls to release the hostages.

Ms Ley said while the Coalition wanted to “see aid reach those who deserve it”, it was important that Hamas, which she said had control over the “completely unacceptable” detention of hostages, acted in the interests of the people of Gaza.

“The first and most important thing to say about this issue is that there are still hostages in Gaza,” she said.

“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.”

The statement, which hit the headlines as MPs arrived in Parliament House for the pomp and ceremony of the opening day of the new term, condemned the “denial of essential humanitarian assistance” to civilians and urged the Israeli Government to comply with its obligations under humanitarian law.

Foreign Minister Penny Wong issued the full position via her X account, describing the humanitarian situation as “catastrophic.”

Hamas, which is designated by Australia as a terrorist organisation, welcomed the international calls emphasising the need for humanitarian aid to flow into Gaza via the United Nations and the condemnation of the “starvation policy pursued by the Israeli occupation.”

In a press release to the Yemeni state news agency, it said the killing of over 800 Palestinian civilians at “aid distribution points controlled by US-Israeli mechanisms” underscored the “brutality of this system and its criminal goal of killing and humiliating Palestinians.”

The international statement overshadowed the inauguration of the 48th Federal parliament, creating the first political stoush of Labor’s second term.

The Greens welcomed the statement as “significant” but urged the Government to sanction the entire Israeli cabinet to “end its support and complicity in genocide,” with Senator David Shoebridge unveiling a petition by more than 2500 Australian healthcare workers calling for action to end the weaponisation of aid in Gaza.

“We’ve seen the Australian Government sign on to strongly worded letter today, and we do welcome that, but unfortunately, a strongly worded letter isn’t going to include food to the people who are starving in Gaza,” said Greens Leader Larissa Waters.

“Our country could and should now try to get aid directly to those people, otherwise they will die. We need to do everything we can to address what is this war of starvation. And Australia could be sending aid to that area, and they should.”