Albanese Labor government to recognise Palestine
'The course of action announced by the government is a betrayal and abandonment of the Israeli hostages; Israel will feel wronged and abandoned by a longstanding ally'
A senior Hamas official has told Nine Newspapers that the terror group welcomes Australia’s recognition of the State of Palestine and that the government has shown “political courage”.
Australia will recognise a Palestinian state at the United Nations General Assembly in September, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese announced on Monday.
The announcement follows similar proclamations from France, the United Kingdom and Canada.
“Australia will recognise the right of the Palestinian people to a state of their own predicated on the commitments Australia has received from the Palestinian Authority,” Albanese said.
“We will work with the international community to make this right a reality. Australia is making this statement today following our Cabinet meeting as part of a coordinated global effort building momentum for a two state solution.”
Albanese said the government was “we are also upholding and strengthening our commitment to the people of Israel and their right to live in freedom, security and safety, because until Israeli and Palestinian statehood is permanent, peace can only be temporary”.
“Ever since the atrocities perpetrated by Hamas on the October 7, 2023 Australia has stood with the people of Israel and our partners and allies around the world in calling for the release of the hostages,” he said.
“We repeat that call today. Our government has made it clear that there can be no role for the terrorists of Hamas in any future Palestinian state.”
Albanese said the Palestinian Authority had reaffirmed it recognises Israel’s right to exist, had committed to demilitarise and to hold general elections, had pledged to abolish its “pay-for-slay” program and had promised broader reform of governance.
“This is an opportunity to deliver self determination for the people of Palestine in a way that isolates Hamas, disarms it and drives it out of the region once and for all,” he added.
Foreign Minister Penny Wong said nations have agreed that “we cannot keep doing the same thing and hoping for a different outcome”.
“We can’t keep waiting for the end of a peace process that has ground to a halt,” she said.
“We made clear we would recognise Palestine when it would best contribute momentum to peace. September is that time when the world says this has gone on far too long, when the world says the heartbreak, death and destruction must end.
“This September, the international community has the chance to forge hope from despair as the world seizes the opportunities that are presented by the new commitments of the Palestinian Authority, and as the world seeks to support the Arab League’s efforts to isolate Hamas.”
Wong said the Netanyahu government “has ignored international opposition to its conduct of the war in Gaza, it’s ignored international opposition to rapidly expanding illegal settlements that are extinguishing the prospect of two state solution”.
“We know that two states is the key. It is the key to a just peace for Israelis and Palestinians alike,” she said.
“We also know this is not the end. There is much more work to do in building a Palestinian state,” she said. “We will help build the capacity of the Palestinian Authority, and with the international community, Australia will hold the Palestinian Authority to its commitments. The practical implementation of our recognition will be tied to progress on these commitments.”
Executive Council of Australian Jewry (ECAJ) president Daniel Aghion said the government had departed from “decades of bipartisan consensus” which had envisaged Palestinian statehood and recognition as part of a comprehensive peace agreement.
““Today’s announcement acknowledges the need for all the hostages to be released and for Hamas to be disarmed and removed from power. It accepts that the Palestinians and the Arab States have to recognise and make peace with Israel as the State of the Jewish people, and normalise relations with it,” Aghion said.
“The major flaw in the announcement is that it relegates all of these conditions to the status of a mere promise to be fulfilled at some future time, and says nothing about what will happen if those conditions are not met.”
For this reason, Aghion said, “We feel that the course of action announced by the government is a betrayal and abandonment of the Israeli hostages who continue to languish in appalling conditions in Gaza without even access to the Red Cross. This announcement gives them no hope for release.
“It leaves Hamas armed and in control of territory, and in a position to regroup and rearm, thereby creating the conditions for the next war rather than a comprehensive peace.”
Aghion added, “Israel will feel wronged and abandoned by a longstanding ally.
“The Palestinian Authority will feel that a huge diplomatic prize has been dropped in its lap, despite its consistent failures to reform, democratise and agree to peaceful coexistence alongside a Jewish state. Hamas and other Islamist groups will see that barbarity on a grand scale can lead to desired political transformation.”
Zionist Federation of Australia president Jeremy Leibler said, “We are deeply concerned that the timing and substance of this policy reversal will embolden Hamas, further jeopardise the lives of Israeli hostages, prolong the war and the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, and place more strain on the longstanding alliance between Australia and Israel, the only democracy in the Middle East.”
The pressure on Australia to recognise Palestinian statehood has intensified following similar moves by Britain and France, with Foreign Minister Penny Wong telling ABC radio that Australian recognition was a matter of “when, not if”.
Prime minister Anthony Albanese held a phone call with Palestinian Authority president Mahmoud Abbas last week, during which he “reinforced Australia’s commitment to a two-state solution because a just and lasting peace depends upon it”.
Abbas reportedly thanked Albanese for Australia’s economic and humanitarian support, with the two leaders agreeing to meet on the sidelines of the upcoming United Nations General Assembly.
The United Kingdom, Canada and France have set the UN meeting in New York to recognise Palestinian statehood. Wong said there was a risk “there will be no Palestine left to recognise if the international community don’t move to create that pathway to a two-state solution”.
However, as recently as last July, Albanese maintained that recognition was not imminent, telling ABC TV’s: “What we will do is we’ll make a decision at the right time. Is the time right now? Are we about to imminently do that? No, we are not.”
The prime minister outlined key conditions that must be met, asking: “How do you exclude Hamas from any involvement there? How do you ensure that a Palestinian state operates in an appropriate way which does not threaten the existence of Israel?”
Executive Council of Australian Jewry president Daniel Aghion met with Albanese in Canberra on 31 July, along with co-CEO Peter Wertheim and head of legal Simone Abel, as pressure mounted on the government to follow Britain and France.
Aghion said Albanese had reassured Jewish leaders then too that recognition was not imminent, despite growing pressure from within Labor ranks. “The prime minister reiterated what he has said publicly about the recognition of a Palestinian state. It is on the government’s agenda, but it is not imminent,” Aghion said.
Aghion welcomed Albanese’s “acknowledgement that Hamas is not only holding Israeli hostages, it is also holding the people of Gaza hostage by needlessly prolonging the conflict”.
The Victorian Labor party conference earlier this month passed resolutions calling for the federal government to “immediately” recognise Palestine, extend existing sanctions from two Israeli ministers to all members of the Israeli cabinet and end all direct and indirect military trade with Israel.
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