Australia backs UK decision to curb arms sales to 'Israel'
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Australia's foreign affairs minister tells Guardian Australia that the country was working with partners like the UK to "put pressure on a real change in the situation in Gaza."
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Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong addresses the National Press Club in Canberra on April 17, 2023. (AP)
Australia is working with the United Kingdom and other allies to "pressure" the Israeli occupation to ease the suffering of Palestinian civilians in Gaza and to prevent the erosion of long-standing rules that safeguard relief workers, The Guardian reported.
The Australian government has officially supported the UK's decision to limit arms supplies to "Israel", contradicting the US', which is said to have discreetly urged Britain against the action.
Penny Wong, Australia's foreign affairs minister, told Guardian Australia, "Australia is working with partners, including the UK, to put pressure on a real change in the situation in Gaza."
The current statements are another example of the Australian government's hardening language against the Israeli assault on Gaza, where about 41,000 Palestinians have been murdered over the last 11 months and over 94,900 have been injured.
Labor is facing increased political pressure from the Greens and independent candidates in traditionally safe seats, as well as from its own rank-and-file members, to adopt a tougher stance against "Israel's" actions.
While the Labor cabinet has advocated for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire since December, it has rejected efforts to label Israeli actions as genocide and impose penalties on Israeli government officials.
Last week, UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy stated that the UK will "immediately suspend 30 out of 350 arms export licenses to Israel".
Wong said she backed the decision and stated that "Palestinian civilians cannot be made to pay the price of defeating Hamas.”
She maintained the Albanese government's claim that Australia "has not supplied weapons or ammunition to Israel" for at least the last five years.
When "Israel" killed Australian charity worker Zomi Frankcom and six colleagues from World Central Kitchen (WCK) in a series of drone strikes in the Gaza Strip, Wong stated that Australia would collaborate with the UN and the international community to pressure "Israel" to modify its cooperation procedures with humanitarian groups.
According to a person acquainted with the situation, the Australian government is collaborating with nations that share its worries that "norms for the protection of aid workers are being eroded, with repercussions for current and future conflicts".
It is also exchanging information with other nations regarding the situation on the ground and evaluations of conformity with international humanitarian law and the UK's statement may give "additional elements" for Australia to examine.
Exclusive: ‘Israel' asked US to exclude permanent ceasefire
A source within the Palestinian Resistance told Al Mayadeen that mediators had conveyed to the Resistance that the United States' was unable to present a proposal acceptable to both "Israel" and Islamic Resistance Movement Hamas.
According to the source, "Israel" pressured the US administration not to offer Hamas a ceasefire proposal without its approval and had insisted that Washington omit any terms such as a "permanent ceasefire" or a "complete withdrawal" from the Gaza Strip from the agreement.
It is important to note that US President Joe Biden previously remarked that Netanyahu "is not making enough effort" to reach an agreement for the release of Israeli captives being held in the Gaza Strip when answering a question from reporters at the White House.
Meanwhile, Israeli media reported earlier that a source familiar with the negotiations stated, "Netanyahu prioritizes continuing the war over retrieving the prisoners [captives]."
In turn, Reuters, citing 10 sources familiar with the talks, noted that Israeli occupation conditions, particularly maintaining a military presence inside the Gaza Strip, specifically along the Philadelphi Route, are complicating negotiations and delaying a ceasefire agreement.
The sources told Reuters that the disagreements stem from conditions set by "Israel", since Hamas had agreed to a version of the ceasefire proposal, which Biden had revealed earlier in May.
For its part, the Resistance in the Gaza Strip holds Israeli occupation's leaders responsible for undermining mediation efforts by persisting with aggression and reneging on previous agreements, particularly the proposal they accepted on July 2.
