Hamas leader praises Australia for recognising Palestine

A senior Hamas leader has praised Australia’s “political courage” in recognising a Palestinian state, claiming it validates the October 7 attacks in which 1200 Israelis were murdered.

It has prompted Israel’s Deputy Foreign Minister Sharren Haskel to say it was a “disgraceful day” for Australia.

The Age reported on Wednesday that a statement from Hassan Yousef, a senior official of the terror group in the West Bank, contradicted comments made by Prime Minister Anthony Albanese on Channel Seven’s Sunrise on Tuesday, when he said, “Hamas will be totally opposed to this decision. Hamas don’t support two states, they support one state.”

“We welcome Australia’s decision to recognise the state of Palestine, and consider it an important step towards achieving justice for our people and securing their legitimate rights,” Yousef told The Age.

“This position reflects political courage and a commitment to the values of justice and the right of peoples to self-determination. We call on all countries, especially those that believe in freedom and human dignity, to follow Australia’s example.”

Questioned by The Age whether Hamas viewed its violent tactics as instrumental in persuading countries like Australia to recognise Palestinian statehood, Yousef responded, “Yes, we believe that the escalation of armed resistance, including the operations carried out on 7 October, has significantly contributed to highlighting the suffering of the Palestinian people and the injustice they face.

“These operations have drawn global attention to the Palestinian cause and compelled many countries and organisations to reconsider their positions, leading to greater support and recognition of Palestine as a state by some countries.”

It follows Hamas official Ghazi Hamad recently saying that Western nations’ moves toward Palestinian recognition were “the fruits” of Hamas’ 7 October assault.

Haskel, who lived in Australia for seven years, wrote on X overnight, “Hamas has thanked the Australian Government for recognising a Palestinian state. When terrorists celebrate your foreign policy, it’s a pretty disgraceful day for a great country like Australia.

“Recognising a Palestinian state rewards the October 7 massacre and is a profound moral failure whilst so many hostages are being starved to death by Hamas in their dungeons of torture.

“The government has just helped Hamas harvest their reward for the worst massacre of Jews since the Holocaust.”

One of the conditions Albanese has cited that Palestinian Authority president Mahmoud Abbas has promised to deliver is to conduct elections. Albanese has also said Hamas should have no role in a Palestinian state.

But Yousef – who won a seat for Hamas in the last Palestinian elections 2006 – insisted to The Age that any Palestinian elections excluding Hamas would lack legitimacy.

“Excluding Hamas means sidelining a large segment of Palestinians,” he said.

Hamas won 74 of 132 seats in 2006, a decisive victory over Abbas’ Fatah party, and remains the more popular of the two factions, according to recent polling.

Executive Council of Australian Jewry co-CEO Alex Ryvchin said, “The Prime Minister framed the recognition of Palestine as a defeat for Hamas because of its violent opposition to a two-state solution and desire to replace Israel with a Palestinian state from the river to the sea.

“He is right about Hamas’s intentions but wrong about how they see the struggle. They’re playing the long game. They view the recognition of a Palestinian state alongside Israel as a leap towards eventual conquest and slaughter of the Jews. This is why they praise our Prime Minister. They feel like October 7 has worked perfectly and now brought them a step closer to total victory.

“Western governments have unwittingly signalled that spectacular acts of violence bring desired political outcomes. In other words, terrorism works because we let it.”

Albanese dismissed the Hamas praise on Thursday when talking to reporters in Brisbane.

“It is Hamas which will engage in propaganda because they are being isolated because the world is horrified by the events of October 7, ” he said. “I won’t be a cheer squad for Hamas and for its statement – What I’ll do is say that Hamas should be isolated, and everyone in political lines in Australia should be a part of that.”

Meanwhile, the Israeli Embassy in Canberra said on Wednesday that “it is deeply troubling that the plight of Israeli hostages, men and women, held by the Hamas terror organisation is reduced to a single line at the bottom” of a joint statement co-signed by Foreign Minister Penny Wong and international counterparts addressing the humanitarian situation in Gaza.

“These innocent civilians are starving in underground tunnels, some forced to dig their own graves for propaganda videos,” the Embassy said in a statement in which it also shared concern for humanitarian suffering in Gaza.

“We have yet to hear the Australian Government speak with the same urgency about their humanitarian situation,” the Embassy said. “Pressure must be placed squarely on Hamas to release them immediately, as their continued captivity is a grave violation of international law and basic human decency.”

The joint statement said “the humanitarian suffering in Gaza has reached unimaginable levels”. “Famine is unfolding before our eyes. Urgent action is needed now to halt and reverse starvation. Humanitarian space must be protected, and aid should never be politicised,” it said.

“We call on the government of Israel to provide authorisation for all international NGO aid shipments and to unblock essential humanitarian actors from operating. Immediate, permanent and concrete steps must be taken to facilitate safe, large-scale access for the UN, international NGOs and humanitarian partners. All crossings and routes must be used to allow a flood of aid into Gaza, including food, nutrition supplies, shelter, fuel, clean water, medicine and medical equipment. Lethal force must not be used at distribution sites, and civilians, humanitarians and medical workers must be protected.

“We are grateful to the US, Qatar and Egypt for their efforts in pushing for a ceasefire and pursuing peace. We need a ceasefire that can end the war, for hostages to be released and aid to enter Gaza by land unhindered.”

It was signed by the Foreign Ministers of Australia, Belgium, Canada, Cyprus, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Greece, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and the UK.