Why those who claim the illegality of West Bank settlements is “settled law” are wrong

If the arguments presented in the essays and papers above are challenging to process for the layperson, that is to be expected. International Law deals with legal principles and precedents that demand a specialisation within the legal academic community.

Which is why neither journalists, nor activists, nor politicians, are qualified to declare what international law is on this vexed issue.

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Australia’s ongoing near silence on Iran

It took months for Australia to even condemn Iran for its support of Russia’s war in Ukraine, support that has only increased and now includes not only drones and body armour, but artillery shells and millions of rounds of small arms ammunition, as well – a reality Australia alone among our allies seems to be ignoring. 

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Australia’s Middle East decision ill-conceived

The Federal Government’s decision… is profoundly disappointing and counterproductive. It will severely strain Australia’s long-standing bipartisan national policy of supporting a negotiated two-state peace, even though the Government says it continues to support this outcome. 

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AIJAC “profoundly disappointed” with new Government stance on West Bank, settlements

The most concerning element of the new government policy is the idea that any Jewish presence in any part of the West Bank, where Jews have lived for thousands of years, and in east Jerusalem, where Judaism’s holiest sites are located, is illegal simply because the Jordanians ethnically cleansed the areas of Jews for 19 years. Asserting that the Western Wall and Temple Mount, Judaism’s holiest sites, are ‘Palestinian territory’ is highly unacceptable.

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Iran expands its military presence in South America

Bolivia, which moved back into Iran’s orbit in 2020, reportedly inked a memorandum of understanding on defence and security with Iran following the Bolivian Defence Minister’s visit to the country on July 20 that may result in the delivery of Iranian drones to the country. Iran’s Defence Minister Mohammad Reza Ashtiani declared the defence agreement with Bolivia “has the potential to serve as a pioneering model for other nations in South America.”

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