Penny Wong has urged Israel not to follow through on its plans to occupy Gaza, a step she said could constitute a breach of international law.<\/p>\n
In a statement to Guardian Australia, Australia\u2019s foreign minister pushed back on Benjamin Netanyahu\u2019s plan to take control of the whole Gaza Strip. The plan approved by Israel\u2019s security cabinet<\/a> after an overnight meeting on Thursday \u2013 to take over Gaza City \u2013 stopped short of that, but will likely displace tens of thousands of Palestinians already suffering from famine.<\/p>\n \u201cAustralia calls on Israel to not go down this path, which will only worsen the humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza,\u201d Wong said.<\/p>\n \u201cPermanent forced displacement is a violation of international law.\u201d<\/p>\n Sign up: AU Breaking News email<\/a><\/p>\n Netanyahu\u2019s office said on social media that the Israel Defense Forces will prepare to take over Gaza City<\/a> and to provide aid to civilians outside the areas of fighting. A post on X said<\/a>: \u201cThe Security Cabinet has approved the Prime Minister\u2019s proposal for defeating Hamas. The IDF will prepare for taking control of Gaza City while distributing humanitarian assistance to the civilian population outside the combat zones.\u201d<\/p>\n Asked in an interview with Fox News<\/a> if Israel would \u201ctake control of all of Gaza\u201d, Netanyahu replied: \u201cWe intend to, in order to assure our security, remove Hamas there.\u201d The Israeli prime minister added, \u201cwe don\u2019t want to keep it\u201d, instead suggesting setting up \u201ca security perimeter\u201d and a plan to \u201chand [Gaza] over to Arab forces\u201d.<\/p>\n Wong said Australia and international partners were maintaining calls for a ceasefire, the return of hostages and aid to flow unimpeded.<\/p>\n \u201cA two-state solution is the only pathway to secure an enduring peace \u2013 a Palestinian state and the State of Israel, living side-by-side in peace and security within internationally recognised borders,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n Netanyahu\u2019s office also said on X that its priorities in occupying Gaza included demilitarisation of and Israeli security control over the Gaza Strip, as well as establishing \u201can alternative civil administration that is neither Hamas nor the Palestinian Authority\u201d.<\/p>\n Israel\u2019s pledge that it would not accept the Palestinian Authority as part of Gaza\u2019s future administration may complicate Australia\u2019s pathway to recognising a Palestinian state.<\/p>\n Anthony Albanese this week spoke with Mahmoud Abbas<\/a>, the head of the Palestinian Authority, and has repeatedly mentioned or invoked that organisation when asked about Australia\u2019s preconditions for recognising a Palestinian state<\/a>.<\/p>\n Other nations such as Canada<\/a> have conditioned their recognition of Palestine on reforms to the Palestinian Authority, including holding elections next year.<\/p>\n Australia\u2019s prime minister pledged to meet Abbas on the sidelines of the UN general assembly next month, the forum where it is speculated Australia could signal its intent on Palestinian recognition. Labor is under mounting pressure from inside and outside its own ranks<\/a> to join the growing global moves toward recognising Palestine.<\/p>\n Palestinians amid the destruction in Gaza City on Thursday. Photograph: Anadolu\/Getty Images<\/p>\n The Greens senator David Shoebridge, who is the party\u2019s spokesperson for foreign affairs, said Israel\u2019s actions should be a \u201cred line\u201d for the Australian government, urging Albanese to level new sanctions on senior members of the Israeli government and security forces that echo those put on the Russian government \u2013 including Magnitsky-style sanctions.<\/p>\n skip past newsletter promotion<\/a><\/p>\n Sign up to Breaking News Australia<\/p>\n Get the most important news as it breaks<\/p>\n Privacy Notice: Newsletters may contain info about charities, online ads, and content funded by outside parties. For more information see our Privacy Policy<\/a>. We use Google reCaptcha to protect our website and the Google Privacy Policy<\/a> and Terms of Service<\/a> apply.<\/p>\n after newsletter promotion<\/p>\n \u201cRussian-style sanctions on Israel would halt millions of dollars in trade that fuels the occupation and genocide in Palestine. These sanctions must also be extended to the Security Cabinet of Israel, which has just signed off on another bloody escalation in the genocide,\u201d Shoebridge said in a statement.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s not good enough for the Albanese government to still be debating how strong our language should be \u2026 Increasingly harsh statements will not feed people, it will not stop the Israeli war machine. Sanctions will.\u201d<\/p>\n The shadow foreign minister, Michaelia Cash, said the \u201coperational tactics\u201d of Israel\u2019s military campaign in Gaza were \u201ca matter for the Israeli Government\u201d.<\/p>\n \u201cThe Coalition wants to see this war end and for no more civilians to suffer. We again call on the terrorist group Hamas to release their hostages and surrender to avoid further loss of human life,\u201d Cash said in a brief statement.<\/p>\n Donald Rothwell, a professor of international law at the Australian National University, said Israel had already essentially been an occupying power in Gaza since its military assault began following the 7 October 2023 terror attack by Hamas, where 1,200 Israeli civilians were killed and dozens of hostages captured.<\/p>\n But Rothwell said Israel\u2019s moves to further occupy and militarily control all of Gaza, as threatened by Netanyahu, raised concern about total annexation of the territory by Israel, and how that could affect global momentum towards recognising a Palestinian state.<\/p>\n \u201cIsrael\u2019s obligations as an occupying power are no different last week \u2026 They need to provide food, humanitarian aid and assistance to civilians, there\u2019s no change in their obligations,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n