'Appalling mistake': Prime Minister Anthony Albanese ‘adopts' language of terrorists in calling slain fighters ‘martyrs'
Mr Albanese, alongside Foreign Affairs Minister Penny Wong on Monday, said Australia would formally recognise Palestine in the UN next month.
Sky News host Chris Kenny said he was 'surprised' Mr Albanese's use of the word 'martyrs' had not gotten more backlash.
'Our government has made it clear that there can be no role for the terrorists of Hamas in any future Palestinian state. This is one of the commitments Australia has sought and received from President Abbas and the Palestinian Authority,' Mr Albanese said.
'The Palestinian Authority has reaffirmed it recognises Israel's right to exist in peace and security. It has committed to demilitarise and to hold general elections.
'It is pledged to abolish the system of payments to the families of prisoners and martyrs.'
Speaking to Sky News, Shadow Finance Minister James Paterson said it was an 'appalling mistake, I hope'.
'Of course, that is what the Palestinian Authority calls people who get on school buses and blow themselves to smithereens and take Israeli and Jewish children with them,' Mr Paterson told Kenny on Tuesday.
'No Australian Prime Minister should endorse or use language like that. We should call it for what it is. The Palestinian Authority pays money to the family of terrorists after they kill Israelis. It's one of the many reasons why we should not recognise a Palestinian state.'
Senator Paterson said the 'flimsy promise of reform' from Palestinian Authority president Mahmoud Abbas should be treated with 'contempt'.
Mr Abbas is the Palestinian Authority President, Chairman of the Palestine Liberation Organisation and the leader of radical political party Fatah.
Fatah has numerous military arms - including the Al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades which participated in the October 7 attacks in Gaza.
Mr Albanese was given assurances about the future of democracy in Palestine, the demilitarisation of the territories and the elimination of Martyr funds by Mr Abbas.
The Palestinian Authority operates a so-called 'Martyrs Fund,' which pays monthly stipends to the families of Palestinians killed or imprisoned for carrying out attacks against Israelis civilians.
The longer the prison sentence, the higher the payment - with some families receiving the equivalent of $5,155 per month which have been linked to incentivising terrorism.
Textbooks used in Palestinian Authority-run schools have long been condemned by international watchdogs for promoting hatred and glorifying violence.
In one instance, a children's book about female suicide bomber Hanadi Jaradat - who killed 21 people in a 2003 bombing - was shared by the organisation's South Hebron Directorate of Education.
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