Penny Wong's joint statement with several other foreign ministers around the world slamming Israel over Gaza humanitarian aid called 'a disappointing inversion of reality'
Foreign Minister Penny Wong has teamed up with 22 of her counterparts from around the world in hitting out at Israel over humanitarian aid to Gaza but their remarks have been branded "a disappointing inversion of reality".
Ms Wong lent her support to a joint donor statement on Monday as Israel revealed plans to "allow a basic amount of food" into Gaza after aid was blocked for more than two months.
The new plan was slammed by the countries which issued the joint statement, including Australia, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, Canada, France and Germany.
"Israel's security cabinet has reportedly approved a new model for delivering aid into Gaza, which the UN and our humanitarian partners cannot support," the statement said.
"They are clear that they will not participate in any arrangement that does not fully respect the humanitarian principles.
"The UN has raised concerns that the proposed model cannot deliver aid effectively, at the speed and scale required.
"Humanitarian aid should never be politicised, and Palestinian territory must not be reduced nor subjected to any demographic change."
But Australian Jewish Association Chief Executive Officer Robert Gregory told SkyNews.com.au: "Senator Wong's statement is a disappointing inversion of reality and reflects twisted moral priorities.
"Israel is engaged in a defensive war against Hamas – a listed terrorist organisation under Australian law – following the 7 October massacre. Hamas not only initiated this war, but deliberately operates from within civilian areas, including hospitals and schools, using its own population as human shields.
"Despite these brutal and complex conditions, Israel has facilitated the delivery of humanitarian aid into Gaza – an extraordinary act of restraint, especially while rockets continue to be fired and innocent people remain in captivity.
"Israel is working on a mechanism to ensure aid can continue to flow without being misused by Hamas."
Mr Gregory noted the joint statement mentioned Israel four times while only referring to Hamas once, which he said was "a clear indication of its skewed priorities".
"It targets the only democracy in the Middle East, while barely naming the terrorist group that started the conflict and continues to hold hostages," he said.
"No country represented in this statement would go to the lengths that Israel has gone to in providing for an enemy population during wartime. It has become easy for the Albanese government to join international pile-ons rather than stand for truth and principle.
"The war in Gaza could end immediately if Hamas laid down its weapons and released the hostages – something that has been true since day one. No amount of international pressure or lecturing from Penny Wong will change Israel's obligation: to bring its people home and to defeat Hamas so that it cannot carry out future massacres."
Executive Council of Australian Jewry President Daniel Aghion said the joint statement failed to address a critical issue relevant to the distribution of aid supplies.
"Whilst the joint donor statement on humanitarian aid to Gaza is well-intentioned and is directed towards alleviating the suffering of civilians in Gaza, it fails to address a critical issue: what measures will be taken to prevent food, medicines and essential supplies from continuing to be stolen by Hamas and other terrorist groups?" he told SkyNews.com.au.
"The joint statement calls on Hamas to 'allow humanitarian assistance to be distributed without interference', but says nothing about how this essential requirement is to be achieved.
"Unless this issue is resolved, the benefit to civilians of resuming aid deliveries will be severely undermined, and the unintended consequence will be to benefit Hamas and encourage it not to release the hostages and to prolong the conflict."
The office of Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu earlier said that "at the recommendation of the IDF, and out of the operational need to enable the expansion of intense fighting to defeat Hamas, Israel will allow a basic amount of food for the population to ensure that a hunger crisis does not develop in the Gaza Strip".
Israel has blocked the entry of medical, food and fuel supplies into Gaza since the start of March to try to pressure Hamas into freeing its hostages.
Mr Netanyahu also said that when Israel had previously opted to provide minimal humanitarian aid during the war, they "discovered that Hamas was looting some of this aid".
He said on Monday that the new method "is distribution points that are secured by the IDF, preventing Hamas' access and allowing American companies to distribute the food and medicine aid to the population".
The joint statement from the foreign ministers said that "food, medicines and essential supplies are exhausted" in Gaza.
"The population faces starvation. Gaza's people must receive the aid they desperately need," it said.
"Prior to the aid block, the UN and humanitarian NGOs delivered aid into Gaza, working with great courage, at the risk of their lives and in the face of major access challenges imposed by Israel."
The government of Israel was also issued "two straightforward messages" through the joint donor statement which was "allow a full resumption of aid into Gaza immediately and enable the UN and humanitarian organisations to work independently and impartially to save lives, reduce suffering and maintain dignity".
"We remain committed to meeting the acute needs we see in Gaza. We also reiterate our firm message that Hamas must immediately release all remaining hostages and allow humanitarian assistance to be distributed without interference," the statement said.
"It is our firm conviction that an immediate return to a ceasefire and working towards the implementation of a two-state solution are the only way to bring peace and security to Israelis and Palestinians and ensure long-term stability for the whole region."
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
West Australian
an hour ago
- West Australian
Israeli army shows tunnel under Gaza Strip hospital
The Israeli army says it has retrieved the body of Hamas military chief Mohammed al-Sinwar in an underground tunnel beneath a hospital in the south of the Gaza Strip, following a targeted operation last month. Another senior Hamas leader, Mohammad Shabana, commander of the Rafah Brigade, was also found dead at the scene along with a number of other militants, who are still being identified, IDF spokesman Brigadier General Effie Defrin said. Israeli forces gave a small group of foreign reporters a tour of the tunnel that had been uncovered beneath the European Hospital in Khan Younis, which Defrin said was a major command and control compound for Hamas. "This is another example of the cynical use by Hamas, using civilians as human shields, using civilian infrastructure, hospitals again and again," said Defrin. "We found underneath the hospital, right under the emergency room, a compound of a few rooms. In one of them we found, we killed Mohammed Sinwar," he said. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced Sinwar's death last month but Defrin said they now had his DNA which proved beyond doubt it was him. Hamas has not commented on reports of the death of either Sinwar or Shabana. Sinwar was the younger brother of Yahya Sinwar, the Palestinian militant group's deceased leader and mastermind of the October 2023 attack on Israel that killed 1200 people according to Israeli tallies, and which triggered the Israeli invasion of the Gaza Strip. Shabana was one of Hamas' most senior and battle-hardened commanders in the south of the enclave. He played a central role in constructing the network of tunnels under the southern city of Rafah, which were used for ambushes and cross-border raids. The drive to Khan Younis in Israeli military vehicles showed widespread devastation, with countless buildings lying in ruins and piles of rubble collected at the roadside. The Israeli military has raided or besieged numerous hospitals during the war, alleging that Hamas uses them to conceal fighters and orchestrate operations - a charge Hamas has repeatedly denied. While Israel has presented evidence in certain cases, some of its assertions remain unverified. Defrin said the army had carefully planned the strike near the European Hospital in order not to damage it. A large trench dug in front of the emergency room entrance led down to a hole in the claustrophobic concrete tunnel, that was used as a hideaway by Hamas fighters, the army said. During the search of the site, Israeli forces recovered weapon stockpiles, ammunition, cash and documents that are now being reviewed for intelligence value. "We will dismantle Hamas because we cannot live with this terror organisation right in our backyard, right across our border," Defrin said. More than 54,000 Palestinians have died during the ongoing Israeli assault, according to Gaza health authorities. The U.N. has warned that most of Gaza's 2.3 million population is at risk of famine.
Perth Now
an hour ago
- Perth Now
Israeli army shows tunnel under Gaza Strip hospital
The Israeli army says it has retrieved the body of Hamas military chief Mohammed al-Sinwar in an underground tunnel beneath a hospital in the south of the Gaza Strip, following a targeted operation last month. Another senior Hamas leader, Mohammad Shabana, commander of the Rafah Brigade, was also found dead at the scene along with a number of other militants, who are still being identified, IDF spokesman Brigadier General Effie Defrin said. Israeli forces gave a small group of foreign reporters a tour of the tunnel that had been uncovered beneath the European Hospital in Khan Younis, which Defrin said was a major command and control compound for Hamas. Mohammad Sinwar was responsible for the deaths of countless civilians. He was eliminated in an IDF & ISA strike on May 13. His body was found beneath the European hospital in Khan Yunis—more proof of how Sinwar, and Hamas, hide behind their civilians and purposely embed… Israel Defense Forces (@IDF) June 8, 2025 "This is another example of the cynical use by Hamas, using civilians as human shields, using civilian infrastructure, hospitals again and again," said Defrin. "We found underneath the hospital, right under the emergency room, a compound of a few rooms. In one of them we found, we killed Mohammed Sinwar," he said. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced Sinwar's death last month but Defrin said they now had his DNA which proved beyond doubt it was him. Hamas has not commented on reports of the death of either Sinwar or Shabana. Sinwar was the younger brother of Yahya Sinwar, the Palestinian militant group's deceased leader and mastermind of the October 2023 attack on Israel that killed 1200 people according to Israeli tallies, and which triggered the Israeli invasion of the Gaza Strip. Shabana was one of Hamas' most senior and battle-hardened commanders in the south of the enclave. He played a central role in constructing the network of tunnels under the southern city of Rafah, which were used for ambushes and cross-border raids. The drive to Khan Younis in Israeli military vehicles showed widespread devastation, with countless buildings lying in ruins and piles of rubble collected at the roadside. The Israeli military has raided or besieged numerous hospitals during the war, alleging that Hamas uses them to conceal fighters and orchestrate operations - a charge Hamas has repeatedly denied. While Israel has presented evidence in certain cases, some of its assertions remain unverified. Defrin said the army had carefully planned the strike near the European Hospital in order not to damage it. A large trench dug in front of the emergency room entrance led down to a hole in the claustrophobic concrete tunnel, that was used as a hideaway by Hamas fighters, the army said. During the search of the site, Israeli forces recovered weapon stockpiles, ammunition, cash and documents that are now being reviewed for intelligence value. "We will dismantle Hamas because we cannot live with this terror organisation right in our backyard, right across our border," Defrin said. More than 54,000 Palestinians have died during the ongoing Israeli assault, according to Gaza health authorities. The U.N. has warned that most of Gaza's 2.3 million population is at risk of famine.
Sky News AU
an hour ago
- Sky News AU
Tax on superannuation robs retirees of self-respect by turning them into wards of state, a ploy straight out of the socialist playbook
If you earn more than $350 a week and are not yet old enough for retirement, you are classified as a "taxable person" by the Australian government. The income tax the Australian Taxation Office claws from your pay packet provides services for non-taxable citizens, be they young, old, poor or infirm. The social compact, in which the nation insures its citizens against misfortune, works well as long as the number of net-contributors and net-recipients remains in balance. Yet the inescapable fact is that the number of taxpayers relative to the number of non-taxpayers will shrink over the next half century as Australians grow older and fewer future taxpayers are born. The old-age dependency ratio, which measures the number of people aged 65 and over for every 100 working-age people, is expected to increase from 26.6 per cent to 38.2 per cent by 2062. This explains why Jim Chalmers is looking to retirement savings rather than income, as he seeks ways to increase government revenue. The $4.4 trillion we have collectively invested in superannuation is too tempting to resist. The government's plan to extract money from superannuation savings by taxing unrealised gains on investments is partly born out of desperation and partly because taxing and spending are what socialist governments like to do. The $3 million threshold will fool few. The Treasurer's refusal to link it to inflation means it will eventually apply to most superannuation savers. Like all forms of taxation, it will transfer wealth from private citizens to the public purse, where it will be spent on the whim of politicians and bureaucrats rather than at the discretion of individuals. Taxing people's retirement savings is particularly egregious. Thrifty individuals who forgo spending during their working years to provide for the necessities of old age should be given every incentive to do so. Every self-funded retiree is one less recipient of public pensions. Those who accumulate enough capital are more likely to maintain their private health insurance payments and enjoy the added comforts of private aged care homes. A tax incentive for working-age individuals to save reduces the burden on future generations of taxpayers. When the government pockets that tax, it improves the books in the short term but creates a long-term public liability. The costs quickly add up. The nominal lifetime cost of paying the average pension is $430,000 for men and $550,000 for women. When you add to that the average cost of public health in retirement ($140,000 for men, $180,000 for women) and aged care, the case for allowing people to look after themselves becomes clear. Yet the explicit assumption in Treasury's forecasts is that an expanded welfare state will provide those things. Treasury's 2023 Intergenerational Report (IGR) frames the ageing population as an inevitable fiscal and economic burden — a "challenge" that will strain public finances, depress productivity, and expand the cost of government services. In the Treasury's perverse logic, the absence of tax on superannuation savings is branded as an expenditure. Yet, if we follow this twisted line of thinking and assume that refraining from taxing superannuation is a cost to the state, it must be set against the money the government will save on pension spending. As the report concedes, while the cost of public pensions is expected to increase by an average of 1.4 per cent of GDP in most OECD countries by the middle of the century, in Australia, it will decrease from 2.3 per cent of GDP in 2022-23 to two per cent in 2062-63. For this, we must thank the Hawke and Keating Labour governments, who had the foresight to use both carrots and sticks to encourage workers to save for retirement. Today, 44 per cent of retirees claim the full government pension, while 25 per cent are self-funded. By 2063, however, those figures are expected to be reversed, as 43 per cent of retirees will be fully self-funded, and only 21 per cent will rely on the state, according to the IGR forecast. The report misses a fundamental opportunity: to recognise older Australians not as dependants but as contributors. From the outset, the report assumes that an ageing population means fewer workers, slower economic growth, and ballooning government expenditure on health, aged care and pensions. It tells us, for example, that government payments for health, aged care, and the NDIS will rise from 6.2 per cent to 10.7 per cent of GDP over the next 40 years. It forecasts the need to double the size of the care workforce, funded primarily through public outlays. It fails to explore how those costs might be reduced, or at least better managed, with the right incentives to encourage personal responsibility. It ignores the potential for Australians of independent means to contribute more directly to their own health and aged care costs if given the freedom and incentive to do so. There is no meaningful discussion of co-contribution models, private health strategies, or reforms that might allow wealthier retirees to opt out of publicly funded care in favour of private arrangements. If government policy continues to penalise thrift and reward dependency, we should not be surprised that more Australians turn to the public purse. The government appears to accept the rise in state dependency as a given. The old are to be cared for, not empowered. Indeed, this will become a self-fulfilling prophecy if the government discourages people from saving for retirement. It presents us with a fatalistic vision of a dystopian welfare state, the kind of future Robert Menzies railed against in 1942 Forgotten People radio talk, a world in which an all-powerful State "will nurse us and rear us and maintain us and pension us and bury us". Menzies's objection to the dependency-driven welfare state was not primarily fiscal or even against the evils of big government. It was that it robbed individuals of the dignity that comes from paying their way in life and the freedom to strive for something better. 'If the motto is to be 'Eat, drink and be merry, for tomorrow you will die, and if it chances you don't die, the State will look after you; but if you don't eat, drink and be merry and save, we shall take your savings from you', then the whole business of life would become foundation-less,' he said. If today's Liberal leaders remain true to the principles of their intellectual founder, they will oppose Chalmers' superannuation tax unconditionally. Taxing paper profits that may never be realised is fundamentally unfair. Nick Cater is a senior fellow at Menzies Research Centre and a regular contributor to Sky News Australia
