Gaza and Aukus nuclear sub deal divide Labor and grassroots groups
Labor Friends of Palestine is making a fresh call for a re-elected Albanese government to impose sanctions on Israel, while the Labor Against War group wants it to 'sink' the agreement to equip Australia with nuclear-powered submarines.
But the government is standing firm on both fronts, exposing a divide between sections of the Labor membership and the federal parliamentary wing.
As the Gaza war has raged, Labor's pro-Palestine lobby has been pressuring the federal government to take a tougher stance on Benjamin Netanyahu's Israeli government and to recognise Palestinian statehood – in line with the party's own national platform.
Sign up for the Afternoon Update: Election 2025 email newsletter
In a statement to be released on Wednesday, the group acknowledged the steps the government has already taken, including supporting a UN resolution for an 'immediate, unconditional and permanent ceasefire in Gaza' and backing aid agency Unrwa.
But it said the actions 'fell far short' of what Labor branches and state conferences have called for.
It made three requests of a second-term Albanese government, including that it condemns Israel's 'genocidal war' in Gaza and the occupation in the West Bank; imposes sanctions on Israel until it ends the occupation of the Occupied Palestinian Territories; and ends military cooperation with Israel.
'The many rank-and-file and branch supporters of Labor Friends of Palestine are working hard to stop [Peter] Dutton and re-elect the Labor government,' the statement read.
'We do so with the legitimate expectation that Labor can and must do better.'
The question of Palestinian statehood ignited tensions inside the Albanese government in the last parliament, culminating in Senator Fatima Payman quitting the party.
The prime minister last week reiterated the government's support for a two-state solution but suggested Hamas's ongoing presence in Gaza meant it wasn't the right time to recognise Palestine.
'Who do you recognise at the moment? Quite clearly, we need to acknowledge that Hamas can have no role in a Palestinian state. That is my position,' he said.
In a lengthy statement responding to Labor Friends of Palestine's requests, a spokesperson for the foreign minister, Penny Wong, said Australia has worked with partners to 'press Israel to abide by its obligations'.
'We've been clear with Israel that Palestinian civilians cannot pay the price of defeating Hamas,' the spokesperson said.
The spokesperson said the government had been firm that Israeli settlements in the Occupied Palestinian Territories were illegal and a barrier to peace. They said Australia had not supplied weapons to Israel for at least the past five years.
Sign up to Afternoon Update: Election 2025
Our Australian afternoon update breaks down the key election campaign stories of the day, telling you what's happening and why it matters
after newsletter promotion
Payman, who is now leading her own party, Australia's Voice, said Labor would be sending a message to members that 'you do not matter' if it didn't recognise Palestine in a second term.
Aukus has also divided the Labor movement, with party elders including Paul Keating joining grassroots members in railing against a security pact that deepens Australia's military ties with the US.
Calls for Labor to re-think or abandon Aukus have grown louder since Donald Trump's US election win in November.
Last month, Labor Against War wrote to Labor MPs and candidates with a series of questions about Aukus, including whether they would lobby internally for the government to withdraw from the deal.
In a letter to the group, the defence minister, Richard Marles, noted a position in support of Aukus was agreed at Labor's 2023 national conference.
'Aukus presents an important opportunity to meet global security challenges and contribute to stability and prosperity in the Indo-Pacific region and beyond,' Marles wrote in a letter seen by Guardian Australia.
Responding to some of the other questions raised in the group's letter, Marles rejected suggestions of any 'secret political commitments' in a revised Aukus treaty and confirmed no decision had been made about a future east coast submarine base.
In a statement to Guardian Australia, Labor Against War convener Marcus Strom said internal resistance to Aukus was mounting 'day by day'.
'ALP members – including LAW supporters – are out wearing down shoe leather to ensure Dutton is defeated and Albanese is returned for a second term,' he said.
'But with Aukus falling apart and Trump trashing trade globally, we will insist that a returned ALP government sink Aukus and put it on the pile of bad Scott Morrison ideas, which we should have done in 2022.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Guardian
11 minutes ago
- The Guardian
Israeli cabinet meeting postponed as tensions rise over Netanyahu's occupation plan
An Israeli security cabinet meeting, which had been expected to discuss prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu's call for the 'full occupation' of Gaza, has been postponed amid mounting tensions over whether the plan is feasible. Amid a stalling of ceasefire negotiations with Hamas, Israeli officials had briefed local and international media that Netanyahu was considering an expansive offensive, aimed at taking full control of the Palestinian territory after 22 months of war against militant group Hamas. However, senior Israeli military officers and former senior commanders warned that the plan would endanger the lives of remaining Israeli hostages held by Hamas, risk further international isolation of Israel and require Israeli soldiers to administer a population in which Hamas fighters were still present. Any move towards full occupation is likely to be strongly resisted by large parts of the international community, already horrified by the conduct of Israel's military campaign. Israel's scorched-earth campaign has already obliterated large parts of Gaza, killing more than 60,000 people, the majority of them civilians, forcing nearly all of Gaza's over 2 million people from their homes and causing what a global hunger monitor last week called an unfolding famine. That has caused widespread international anger and prompted several European countries to say they would recognise a Palestinian state next month if there was no ceasefire, amid mounting calls for sanctions on Israel. The disquiet follows briefings to Israeli journalists on Monday saying that Netanyahu had decided the expanded offensive was a foregone conclusion. 'The die has been cast. We're going for the full conquest of the Gaza Strip – and defeating Hamas,' the unnamed sources said, quoting Netanyahu. By Tuesday, however, evidence had emerged of deep splits between Netanyahu and senior military officials, including chief of staff Eyal Zamir, who reportedly voiced opposition to the plan, prompting calls for his dismissal. Military analysts in the Israeli media, channelling some defence officials, were also sceptical. Writing in Yedioth Ahronoth, military affairs commentator Yossi Yehoshua described the risks of the proposal. 'Hostages … will die, large numbers of IDF [Israel Defense Forces] soldiers who will be killed as well as a serious logistical problem – where to house the roughly 1 million civilians who are now in Gaza City. 'Currently, Israel simply doesn't have legitimacy either to continue to fight in Gaza or to establish a city of refugees on its ruins.' Israeli officials have said Netanyahu discussed a plan with the White House as it attempted to portray Hamas as having walked away from ceasefire negotiations, a claim denied by Hamas, which blamed Israel for the protracted impasse. While the Trump administration has not commented on the Netanyahu proposal, it has been given some credence by leaked comments made by US envoy Steve Witkoff to Israeli hostage families at the weekend, suggesting his proposal for a ceasefire in exchange for the release of half of the remaining living hostages had failed. Witkoff added that Donald Trump 'now believes that everybody should come home at once. No piecemeal deals,' adding they were now pursuing an 'all or nothing' plan. At the centre of the Netanyahu plan is the notion that, by surrounding areas where hostages are believed to be held, Israeli forces can raid those areas and rescue the captives, a policy that has broadly failed during the past two years of war. Amid questions over the practicality of a wider offensive, some have speculated that Netanyahu's call may be more rhetorical than real in substance, aimed at keeping on board far right ministers who have demanded they be allowed to build settlements in Gaza. A Palestinian official close to the talks and mediation said Israeli threats could be a way to pressure Hamas to make concessions at the negotiation table. 'It will only complicate the negotiation further, at the end, the resistance factions will not accept less than an end to the war, and a full withdrawal from Gaza,' the official told Reuters, requesting not to be named. Practically, too, it is unclear whether Israel has the capacity for the kind of expanded operation described. The IDF has struggled with manpower issues as the war drags on, with reservists being repeatedly called up amid concerns over a mental health crisis that has seen a number of suicides. On Tuesday, during a visit to Gaza, Israel's defence minister, Israel Katz, suggested a less comprehensive long-term Israeli occupation, insisting that Israel would maintain a permanent IDF presence in a 'security buffer zone' in strategic areas of Gaza to prevent future attacks on Israeli communities and arms smuggling into the strip. 'This is the main lesson of October 7,' said Katz. 'As in other sectors, here too the IDF must stand between the enemy and our communities – not only to fight the enemy, but to separate it from our civilians.' Inside Gaza on Tuesday, Israeli gunfire and strikes killed at least 13 Palestinians, local health authorities said, including five people in a tent in Khan Younis and three aid seekers near Rafah in the south. Israeli tanks pushed into central Gaza earlier on Tuesday, but it was not clear if the move was part of a larger ground offensive. Agencies contributed to this article
South Wales Argus
16 minutes ago
- South Wales Argus
Ex-Israeli security chiefs call for end to war as Netanyahu hints at new stage
On the ground in Gaza, health officials reported new deaths on Tuesday of Palestinians seeking food at distribution points. The Israeli defence body co-ordinating aid to Gaza announced a new deal with local merchants to improve aid deliveries as desperation mounts. The former security officials speaking out included those who led Israel's Shin Bet internal security service, Mossad spy agency and the Israeli military. In a roughly three-minute video posted to social media this week, they demanded an end to the war and said the far-right members of the government are holding the country 'hostage' in prolonging the conflict. 'This is leading the state of Israel to the loss of its security and its identity,' Ami Ayalon, former head of Shin Bet, said in the footage. Yoram Cohen, former head of Shin Bet, called Mr Netanyahu's objectives 'a fantasy'. 'If anyone imagines that we can reach every terrorist and every pit and every weapon and in parallel bring our hostages home, I think it is impossible,' he said. Mr Netanyahu, meanwhile, announced on Monday that he would convene his Security Cabinet in the coming days to direct the army on the next stage of the war, hinting that even tougher military action was an option in Gaza. Mr Netanyahu said he remained committed to achieving his war objectives, including defeating Hamas, releasing all hostages and ensuring Gaza never again threatens Israel. Israeli media said the meeting was expected on Tuesday, with disagreements between Mr Netanyahu and the army chief, Lt Gen Eyal Zamir, on how to proceed. The reports, citing anonymous officials in Mr Netanyahu's office, said the prime minister was pushing the army, which already controls about three quarters of Gaza, to conquer the entire territory, a step that could endanger the hostages, deepen the humanitarian crisis in Gaza and further isolate Israel internationally. Various reports have said Mr Zamir opposes this step and could step down or be pushed out if it is approved. Palestinians struggle to get food from the back of a truck in southern Gaza (Mariam Dagga/AP) Several hundred Palestinians have been killed by Israeli fire since May while heading toward food distribution sites, airdropped parcels and aid convoys in Gaza, according to witnesses, local health officials and the United Nations human rights office. The Israeli military says it has fired only warning shots and disputes the toll. Local health officials said Israeli forces opened fire on Tuesday morning towards Palestinians seeking desperately needed aid and in targeted attacks in the central and southern Gaza Strip, killing at least 25 people. The Israeli military did not have an immediate comment. The dead include 19 people who were killed in southern Gaza, 12 of them seeking aid near the Morag corridor and in Teina area, some three kilometres (1.86 miles) from the Israeli-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation hub east of Khan Younis, according to the Nasser hospital and the Ministry of Health. The ministry does not distinguish between militants and civilians and operates under the Hamas government. The UN and other international organisations see it as the most reliable source of data on casualties. Elsewhere in central Gaza, Al-Awda hospital said it received the bodies of six Palestinians who were killed on Tuesday after Israeli troops targeted crowds near an aid distribution site run by the GHF. The GHF, however, said there were no incidents at their sites on Tuesday. The Israeli defence body in charge of co-ordinating aid to Gaza, called COGAT, wrote on X that there will be a 'gradual and controlled renewal of the entry of goods through the private sector in Gaza'. 'This aims to increase the volume of aid entering the Gaza Strip, while reducing reliance on aid collection by the UN and international organisations,' it said Tuesday. A limited number of local merchants were approved for the plan and will sell basic food products, baby food, fruit and vegetables, and hygiene supplies through bank transfers, COGAT said. Thousands of Palestinians crowded against aid trucks entering the Gaza Strip through the southern Morag corridor on Monday, attempting to get whatever food they could during a protracted food shortage across the enclave. Mohammed Qassas from Khan Younis in southern Gaza said his children are so hungry that he is forced to storm aid trucks. 'I have young children, how am I supposed to feed them? No one has mercy. This resembles the end of the world,' he said. 'If we fight, we get the food. If we don't fight, we don't get anything.' As the trucks drove away, men climbed onto them, scrambling for any remaining scraps. 'The conditions are very challenging and we are hoping for a system to be in place,' Mr Qassas said. 'Some people go home with some 200 kilogrammes (441 pounds), and others go home with only one kilogramme (35 ounces). It is a mafia-like system.' After relentless efforts to get food from the trucks, it has become a routine for men to be seen coming back carrying flour sacks on their back, as well as carrying wounded and dead bodies from near the aid sites. Yusif Abu Mor from Khan Younis said the trucks' aid system is akin to a death trap. 'This aid is stained with humiliation and blood,' he said, adding that aid seekers run the risk of being killed by shootings or run over by aid trucks surrounded by crowds of hungry Palestinians. Israel's blockade and military offensive have made it nearly impossible to deliver aid safely, contributing to the territory's slide towards famine nearly 22 months into the war with Hamas. Aid groups say Israel's week-old measures to allow more aid in are far from sufficient. Families of hostages in Gaza fear starvation affects them too, but blame Hamas. As international alarm has mounted, several countries have airdropped aid over Gaza. The UN and aid groups call such drops costly and dangerous for residents, and say they deliver far less aid than trucks.
South Wales Guardian
31 minutes ago
- South Wales Guardian
Ex-Israeli security chiefs call for end to war as Netanyahu hints at new stage
On the ground in Gaza, health officials reported new deaths on Tuesday of Palestinians seeking food at distribution points. The Israeli defence body co-ordinating aid to Gaza announced a new deal with local merchants to improve aid deliveries as desperation mounts. The former security officials speaking out included those who led Israel's Shin Bet internal security service, Mossad spy agency and the Israeli military. In a roughly three-minute video posted to social media this week, they demanded an end to the war and said the far-right members of the government are holding the country 'hostage' in prolonging the conflict. 'This is leading the state of Israel to the loss of its security and its identity,' Ami Ayalon, former head of Shin Bet, said in the footage. Yoram Cohen, former head of Shin Bet, called Mr Netanyahu's objectives 'a fantasy'. 'If anyone imagines that we can reach every terrorist and every pit and every weapon and in parallel bring our hostages home, I think it is impossible,' he said. Mr Netanyahu, meanwhile, announced on Monday that he would convene his Security Cabinet in the coming days to direct the army on the next stage of the war, hinting that even tougher military action was an option in Gaza. Mr Netanyahu said he remained committed to achieving his war objectives, including defeating Hamas, releasing all hostages and ensuring Gaza never again threatens Israel. Israeli media said the meeting was expected on Tuesday, with disagreements between Mr Netanyahu and the army chief, Lt Gen Eyal Zamir, on how to proceed. The reports, citing anonymous officials in Mr Netanyahu's office, said the prime minister was pushing the army, which already controls about three quarters of Gaza, to conquer the entire territory, a step that could endanger the hostages, deepen the humanitarian crisis in Gaza and further isolate Israel internationally. Various reports have said Mr Zamir opposes this step and could step down or be pushed out if it is approved. Several hundred Palestinians have been killed by Israeli fire since May while heading toward food distribution sites, airdropped parcels and aid convoys in Gaza, according to witnesses, local health officials and the United Nations human rights office. The Israeli military says it has fired only warning shots and disputes the toll. Local health officials said Israeli forces opened fire on Tuesday morning towards Palestinians seeking desperately needed aid and in targeted attacks in the central and southern Gaza Strip, killing at least 25 people. The Israeli military did not have an immediate comment. The dead include 19 people who were killed in southern Gaza, 12 of them seeking aid near the Morag corridor and in Teina area, some three kilometres (1.86 miles) from the Israeli-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation hub east of Khan Younis, according to the Nasser hospital and the Ministry of Health. The ministry does not distinguish between militants and civilians and operates under the Hamas government. The UN and other international organisations see it as the most reliable source of data on casualties. Elsewhere in central Gaza, Al-Awda hospital said it received the bodies of six Palestinians who were killed on Tuesday after Israeli troops targeted crowds near an aid distribution site run by the GHF. The GHF, however, said there were no incidents at their sites on Tuesday. The Israeli defence body in charge of co-ordinating aid to Gaza, called COGAT, wrote on X that there will be a 'gradual and controlled renewal of the entry of goods through the private sector in Gaza'. 'This aims to increase the volume of aid entering the Gaza Strip, while reducing reliance on aid collection by the UN and international organisations,' it said Tuesday. A limited number of local merchants were approved for the plan and will sell basic food products, baby food, fruit and vegetables, and hygiene supplies through bank transfers, COGAT said. Thousands of Palestinians crowded against aid trucks entering the Gaza Strip through the southern Morag corridor on Monday, attempting to get whatever food they could during a protracted food shortage across the enclave. Mohammed Qassas from Khan Younis in southern Gaza said his children are so hungry that he is forced to storm aid trucks. 'I have young children, how am I supposed to feed them? No one has mercy. This resembles the end of the world,' he said. 'If we fight, we get the food. If we don't fight, we don't get anything.' As the trucks drove away, men climbed onto them, scrambling for any remaining scraps. 'The conditions are very challenging and we are hoping for a system to be in place,' Mr Qassas said. 'Some people go home with some 200 kilogrammes (441 pounds), and others go home with only one kilogramme (35 ounces). It is a mafia-like system.' After relentless efforts to get food from the trucks, it has become a routine for men to be seen coming back carrying flour sacks on their back, as well as carrying wounded and dead bodies from near the aid sites. Yusif Abu Mor from Khan Younis said the trucks' aid system is akin to a death trap. 'This aid is stained with humiliation and blood,' he said, adding that aid seekers run the risk of being killed by shootings or run over by aid trucks surrounded by crowds of hungry Palestinians. Israel's blockade and military offensive have made it nearly impossible to deliver aid safely, contributing to the territory's slide towards famine nearly 22 months into the war with Hamas. Aid groups say Israel's week-old measures to allow more aid in are far from sufficient. Families of hostages in Gaza fear starvation affects them too, but blame Hamas. As international alarm has mounted, several countries have airdropped aid over Gaza. The UN and aid groups call such drops costly and dangerous for residents, and say they deliver far less aid than trucks.
