Israel-Hamas ceasefire agreement: Anthony Albanese, Keir Starmer, Joe Biden react to hostages being freed

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has welcomed the Israel-Hamas ceasefire agreement as a “constructive step towards peace and stability” in the region, and voiced his hopes it would help lower the temperature in Australia.

Downplaying expectations his Government would recognise Palestine before the next election, Mr Albanese said: “Today must mark a new chapter for the Israeli and Palestinian people.”

“We hope it will allow the Palestinian people the opportunity to rebuild, reform their governance which is most necessary to pursue self-determination,” he said.

He paid tribute to the outgoing Biden administration and the incoming Trump team, who worked as “one team” with the Egyptian and Qatar Governments to mediate the ceasefire deal with Israeli and Hamas negotiators to end the 15-month war.

The ceasefire will be implemented in three stages, beginning on Sunday.

Mr Albanese reflected on the horrific loss of civilian life and displacement and said the deal was an “important breakthrough”, especially for the overwhelming number of Australians who “want to see an end to (the) conflict, they don’t want the conflict brought here”.

“This is not the end. But this is a really important breakthrough and step forward,” he said.

Asked if Australia would contribute to rebuilding Gaza, which has been destroyed during the conflict, Mr Albanese said he didn’t want to get ahead of today’s announcement.

“The first priority is to get food and essentials to the people of Gaza. That’s what the priority is of not just Australia, but the international community, and that is what this agreement has achieved,” he said.

He said he couldn’t “see any circumstance” where his Government could recognise Palestinian statehood before the next election - due by May.

Mr Albanese reiterated his position that there is no role for Hamas in a future Palestinian state.

He emphasised that “Australia remains unequivocal in our condemnation of Hamas’ atrocities on 7 October, and its ongoing acts of terror”.

“There must be no role for Hamas in the future governance of Gaza. Any future Palestinian state must not be in a position to threaten Israel’s security,” he said in a joint statement with Foreign Minister Penny Wong. “We will continue to act in partnership with the international community to support the urgent humanitarian needs of the people of Gaza.”

Opposition Leader Peter Dutton also welcomed the deal, and said he hoped the agreement could be sustained.

He said Australians should “never forget the carnage” that took place on October 7, and that the Prime Minister’s priority should now be on re-establishing its “important relationship with Israel” - which Mr Dutton accused Labor of damaging.

“The Jewish community has been utterly bewildered by the lack of leadership that’s been provided by the prime minister, which has given rise to the antisemitism that we see in the country,” Mr Dutton said.

“I want to see it come to an end quickly because the firebombing of synagogues, the targeting … of people who are involved in society and philanthropic work is completely and utterly unacceptable.”

Before recognising Palestinian statehood, Mr Dutton said the international community needed to “wait and see” if Hamas honoured their commitment and reiterated the Coalition’s position that the terrorist organisation should not be rewarded.

Global leaders react to Israel-Hamas ceasefire and hostage agreement

UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer celebrated the freeing of hostages who were “brutally ripped from their homes” by Hamas in what was the “deadliest massacre of Jewish people since the Holocaust”.

“After months of devastating bloodshed and countless lives lost, this is the long-overdue news that the Israeli and Palestinian people have desperately been waiting for,” he said.

“They have borne the brunt of this conflict – triggered by the brutal terrorists of Hamas, who committed the deadliest massacre of Jewish people since the Holocaust on October 7th, 2023.

“The hostages, who were brutally ripped from their homes on that day and held captive in unimaginable conditions ever since, can now finally return to their families.

“For the innocent Palestinians whose homes turned into a warzone overnight and the many who have lost their lives, this ceasefire must allow for a huge surge in humanitarian aid, which is so desperately needed to end the suffering in Gaza.

Sir Starmer added that leaders must now secure a “permanently better future for the Israeli and Palestinian people – grounded in a two-state solution that will guarantee security and stability for Israel, alongside a sovereign and viable Palestine state”.

US President Joe Biden said: “After many months of intensive diplomacy by the United States, along with Egypt and Qatar, Israel and Hamas have reached a ceasefire and hostage deal.”

“This deal will halt the fighting in Gaza, surge much-needed humanitarian assistance to Palestinian civilians, and reunite the hostages with their families after more than 15 months in captivity.

“I laid out the precise contours of this plan on May 31, 2024, after which it was endorsed unanimously by the UN Security Council.

“It is the result not only of the extreme pressure that Hamas has been under and the changed regional equation after a ceasefire in Lebanon and weakening of Iran — but also of dogged and painstaking American diplomacy. My diplomacy never ceased in their efforts to get this done.”