Sharri Markson clears an unhappy MP over its leader Anthony Albanese’s decision to ‘turn Australia’s foreign policy over to the radical left’
- PM police flutter about new Middle East policy
- Sharri Markson says Israel was ‘hanging out to dry’
- Debate with Labor MP turns into a shouting match
A controversial phone call about Middle East politics has led a TV presenter to accuse Prime Minister Anthony Albanese of handing over control of Australia’s foreign policy to the ‘fringe’ of his party’s ‘radical left’.
In a major shift, Australia will now label East Jerusalem, the West Bank and Gaza as Israeli ‘occupied’ Palestinian territories and condemn Israeli settlements in the West Bank as ‘illegal under international law’.
On her self-titled Sky News show, journalist and commentator Sharri Markson on Wednesday accused Mr Albanese and Foreign Secretary Penny Wong, who announced the change on Tuesday, of pandering to his party’s left wing.
She said the move led to “accusations that Anthony Albanese has hung Israel to go dry to prevent a messy factional battle at next week’s national conference.”
“The ragged edges of the radical Labor left now shape our foreign policy,” Markson claimed.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese (pictured centre) has been accused of changing Australia’s policy towards Israel and the Palestinian territories to appease his party’s radical left
It will embarrass Australians on the international stage and in the eyes of our closest ally, the United States.
“This is the first time Australia has had a prime minister who is categorically a closer friend to the Palestinians than to Israel.”
In parliament, opposition leader Peter Dutton on Wednesday accused Mr Albanese of making a ‘backroom deal to avoid an embarrassing faction battle over AUKUS at Labour’s national conference’.
Mr Albanese denied the move was a deal to prevent his party’s left from opposing the AUKUS deal, which commits Australia to buying nuclear-powered submarines from the US.
He said the move was part of promoting a “two-state solution between Israel and the Palestinians.”
“We believe it is in the interest of the Israelis and Palestinians that no action be taken by either side to undermine the potential of that two-state solution being achieved,” Albanese told Parliament.
He said his government strongly supports Israel and that “it is good to exist within secure borders.”
A studio discussion about Labor’s policy change on Tuesday quickly developed into a shouting match between ALP MP Graham Perrett, Liberal Senator Hollie Hughes and host Sharri Markson
On Tuesday evening, a shouting match broke out between Markson, Labor MP Graham Perrett and Liberal Senator Hollie Hughes over Labour’s new policies.
Ms Markson asked Mr Perrett why the Labor left has an ‘obsession’ with condemning Israel while ignoring human rights issues from other places in the world.
“Why doesn’t the Labor Caucus pass resolutions about the Taliban now banning women in Afghanistan from going to a doctor for training and requiring them to cover their heads and faces again.” Markson asked.
“Where are all these Labor caucus resolutions?”
While Mr Perrett tried to protest the interrogation line, Senator Hughes called it “absolutely outrageous” that Palestinian suicide bombings are being “swept under the carpet by the Labor Party”.
Mr Perrett started muttering ‘that’s rubbish’ and when Senator Hughes asked him what rubbish was he replied ‘The idea of it being swept under the rug by the Labor Party’.
What followed was nearly 15 minutes of each contestant screaming as they tried to talk over each other.
Under Labour’s new policy, some of Judaism’s holiest sites, including the Temple Mount and the Western Wall, are now considered “occupied Palestinian territory,” as are the wider Gaza Strip and the West Bank.
Israel’s policy of allowing its citizens to settle in the West Bank has long been a source of conflict with Palestinians (pictured, Israeli soldiers break up a Palestinian demonstration against settlers in Hebron on Au
Israel’s policy of allowing Jewish settlers to claim territories in the West Bank has long been a source of conflict between the state and the Palestinians.
Senator Wong stressed on Tuesday that the new policy stance was consistent with previous Australian governments and UN Security Council resolutions.
She said those bodies had “determined that the (Israeli) settlements had no legal validity and constituted a violation of international law.”
Australia remained a “dedicated friend to Israel,” Senator Wong said, recognizing the country’s right to defend itself in a “uniquely challenging security environment.”