‘We cannot stand by': Government sends strongest signal yet on Palestinian recognition

Sydney Morning Herald

18 hours ago

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has discussed efforts to end the humanitarian crisis in Gaza with the head of the United Nations as the government sends increasingly strong signals it will join a coalition of nations recognising a Palestinian state next month.
Albanese also had a phone call with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas on Tuesday, in which they committed to meet on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York in September.
Albanese spoke to UN Secretary-General António Guterres on Friday to discuss the upcoming general assembly, a conversation government sources said was part of an escalating set of diplomatic encounters as international pressure mounts to recognise Palestinian statehood.
The call had previously been reported, but not that the pair spoke about Palestine.
Foreign Minister Penny Wong has used her strongest language on the issue this week, heightening the sense of urgency to recognise Palestine by arguing that time was running out to keep a two-state solution alive.
'There is a risk there will be no Palestine left to recognise if the international community [doesn't] move to create that pathway to a two-state solution,' she told ABC radio on Tuesday.
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'It has been my long-held position that there will be no peace and security for the people of Israel unless we resolve to a Palestinian state. That has been my view for decades.'
Her comments came as Israeli media outlets reported that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu planned to order the full military occupation of Gaza in a last-ditch effort to force Hamas to surrender and recover the remaining Israeli hostages taken during the Hamas attacks on October 7, 2023.