Australia, UK and Canada set up Israel-Palestine peace fund

Australia has joined the United Kingdom and Canada in establishing an International Peace Fund for Israelis and Palestinians, a multi-donor initiative the three governments say is aimed at building the conditions for lasting peace.

In a joint announcement on 11 June, Foreign Minister Penny Wong, UK Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper and Canadian Foreign Minister Anita Anand said each nation would contribute initial seed funding equivalent to £1 million (about $2 million) over three years. Once established, the fund will be open to contributions from other international partners.

“The fund will help strengthen the voices of moderates and marginalise the extremists, including Hamas,” the ministers said.

The announcement was made as Cooper hosted Wong and Anand in the UK for talks on the Middle East, at what the ministers described as “a moment of acute crisis in Israel and Palestine”.

“The last three years have exacted a devastating and dehumanising toll on civilians and deepened mistrust and division between communities,” they said, adding that civil society in the region had faced “increasing restrictions and unprecedented pressure”.