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100 days on, the trauma has not dissipated
For Israelis, October 7 was cataclysmic and transformational, like September 11, 2001 was for the US, only more so… These events left a collective and still unhealed scar on not just the seven million Jews of Israel, but Jews the world over.
Read MoreAustralia needs to join the US and UK in sanctioning Hamas and Iran
Australia has not sanctioned Iran for its material support of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine since March 20 despite the drastically increasing levels of this support. Its most recent sanctions against Iran, for any reason, were imposed three months ago.
Read MoreSouth Africa’s ICJ “genocide” case against Israel “cynical and politicised act of lawfare”
South Africa’s contention in its International Court of Justice (ICJ) claim – that Israel’s actions to combat terror in the wake of the October 7 wave of unprovoked mass murder, rape, torture and kidnapping directed largely against civilians inside Israeli territory amount to the crime of genocide – is clearly absurd
Read More‘From the River to the Sea’ is the Postmodern ‘Hep! Hep!’
‘From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free’ is a new attempt to deny any Jewish claim to national self-determination in the land of Israel, to deny Jewish indigeneity in the land of Israel, despite our unbroken and documented presence on the land for almost 4,000 years, and ascribe indigeneity solely to another people.
Read MorePropaganda and “Fake Journalists” in Gaza
When two Al Jazeera journalists were killed in an Israeli airstrike in southern Gaza this past Sunday, the predictable response from some was that Israel must be deliberately targeting journalists.
Read MoreThe end of judicial reform, and the beginning of healing
This reform was aimed at reducing what right-wing supporters believed to be excessive powers held by the courts… However, for millions of Israelis, the suggested reform was seen as a direct attack on the fragile democratic structure of the Jewish state.
Read MoreThe Gaza War as seen from Southeast Asia
The Hamas onslaught upon Israel on October 7 and the resulting military response by Israel prompted a wide range of responses across Southeast Asia.
Read MoreThe UN’s disgraceful response to Hamas massacre can’t go unchallenged
It should have been the easiest thing in the world to do — for the United Nations to unequivocally condemn the brutal and unprovoked Hamas terror attack that killed 1,200 Israelis, and led to the capture of more than 200.
Read MoreHamas is the cause, not the effect, of Israeli policies
Hamas is the cause, not the effect, of the policies they decry, and October 7 has no relation to settlements in the West Bank, the blockade of Gaza or any other Israeli policy. To deny this is to deny history and ignore Hamas’ description of itself and its ideology and motives.
Read MoreNo ceasefire can work unless Hamas disarms
It should be obvious that the only way to achieve any such sustainable outcome is for the military pressure on Hamas to continue until it capitulates. Voting in favour of an UNGA resolution calling for an “immediate humanitarian ceasefire” with no conditions on Hamas doesn’t advance Australian interests for such a “sustainable ceasefire”. It works against it.
Read MoreAIJAC questions Australia co-signing “counter-productive” statement on settler violence
Australia/Israel & Jewish Affairs Council Executive Director Dr Colin Rubenstein has questioned Australia’s co-signing a statement with other nations, including France and the United Kingdom, that condemned what they claimed was “record high” violence from extremist settlers
Read MoreDismantling Hamas is vital to any hopes of Middle East peace
Australia’s foreign policy goals can best be served by searching for ways to make sure the current Gaza war will end with Hamas’ rule dismantled rather than seeking to legitimise or strengthen Hamas in the utterly misguided hope it can somehow be moderated and converted into a genuine peace partner.
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