Guardian:
‘do not go down this path,’ Wong warns Israel ahead of planned assault on Rafah
Major impending ground offensive on city where more than a million Palestinians are sheltering would be ‘unjustifiable’, foreign affairs minister says.
No ‘credible, executable plan’ to protect Rafah civilians has yet emerged, Wong says
Foreign minister Penny Wong says Australia is reflecting the concerns of many in the international community in its message to Israel
Coalition senator Simon Birmingham asks for clarity on what limits the Australian government is seeking, or caveats it has in mind, when it tells Israel regarding Rafah: “do not go down this path”.
The foreign minister, Penny Wong, says Australia is reflecting the concerns of many in the international community. Wong reads out stark and similar quotes from Australia’s closest allies and partners including the US, the UK and Germany.
Birmingham wants to know whether Australia is calling for no military activities in Rafah, or adopting the Joe Biden formulation of urging Israel to not proceed unless credible plans are presented to protect civilians.
Wong says her comments are “consistent with the principles of international law and international humanitarian law”. She says she intends to be “careful” in her language, given her position as foreign minister. Wong says she does not believe the international community has yet seen a credible and executable plan to protect more than one million civilians in Rafah.
Birmingham refers to the recent rescue of two hostages by Israel in Rafah and asks:
How does your statement sit or do you wish to have it viewed in relation to operations or activities to secure the release of hostages who are still held by Hamas?
Wong replies:
We have been calling for the release of hostages since the commencement of this conflict.
The government reiterates that it does not believe there is any place for Hamas in the governance of Gaza after the conflict.
Updated at
10.07 AEDT
No comments:
Post a Comment