Australia says it will recognise Palestinian state
Australia will recognise a state of Palestine in September at the United Nations General Assembly, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said on Monday.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Dubai Eye
35 minutes ago
- Dubai Eye
Malaysia, partners sending peace mission to Myanmar to help Rohingya refugees
Malaysia and some regional partners will send a joint delegation to Myanmar to push for peace and humanitarian aid for Rohingya refugees struggling in Bangladesh, the Southeast Asian nation's Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said on Tuesday. Bangladesh shelters more than 1 million Rohingya refugees in camps in its southeastern district of Cox's Bazar, the world's largest refugee settlement. Anwar's comments came at the start of a three-day visit by Bangladesh's interim head, Nobel peace laureate Muhammad Yunus, to Malaysia. "To secure peace in Myanmar is of course a great priority, along with immediate humanitarian assistance for the suffering first, the refugees and also the victims of earthquakes," Anwar told a joint press briefing with Yunus. Malaysia's foreign minister will coordinate the Myanmar mission, set for the coming weeks, along with counterparts from Indonesia, the Philippines, and Thailand, added Anwar, who is chair of the ASEAN regional grouping this year. "We are concerned with the burden placed on Bangladesh on having to cater for enormous numbers of Rohingya refugees." Escalating conflict and targeted violence against the Rohingya have forced about 150,000 to flee to Bangladesh in the past 18 months, the United Nations said. Malaysia and Bangladesh signed five pacts during Yunus's visit, covering defence cooperation and collaboration in supply and infrastructure of liquefied natural gas (LNG), petroleum products, and related facilities.
Khaleej Times
an hour ago
- Khaleej Times
Palace mull legal steps after losing appeal over Europa League demotion
Crystal Palace said on Tuesday they are seeking legal advice on possible next steps after the Court of Arbitration for Sport dismissed the club's appeal against UEFA's decision to demote them from the Europa League to the Conference League. European soccer's governing body made the decision over Palace's multi-club ownership rule breach because at the time of assessment on March 1 the John Textor-founded Eagle Football Group were majority owners of fellow Europa League side Olympique Lyonnais and also held shares in Palace. US businessman Textor's Eagle Football Holdings sold their stake in Palace last month. However, CAS upheld Uefa's ruling on Monday, and dismissed Palace's argument that the club received unfair treatment in comparison to Lyon and Nottingham Forest, with the latter replacing them in the Europa League. "The decision by UEFA and followed by the Court of Arbitration for Sport shows that sporting merit is rendered meaningless," Palace, who had qualified for the Europa League as FA Cup winners, said in a statement. "It appears that certain clubs, organisations and individuals have a unique privilege and power ... while we respect the CAS tribunal members, the process is designed to severely restrict and, in our case, make it almost impossible to receive a fair hearing. "UEFA's decision has wider implications for the governance of the sport. A combination of poorly conceived regulations and their unequal application means our brilliant fans will be deprived of the chance to watch this team compete in the Europa League for the first time in our history." Uefa and CAS were not immediately available to comment. Palace said the European Court of Justice's ruling earlier this month, which allows national courts to conduct in-depth reviews of arbitral awards by CAS to ensure they are compliant with EU law, will ensure greater scrutiny of sport's top court. "Only then will fairness and due process be granted to every team," Palace added. "Although we continue to take legal advice on the next steps, we will compete in the Conference League." Palace, who won the Community Shield on Sunday with victory over Premier League champions Liverpool on penalties, are in the Conference League qualifying playoff round later this month.
The National
2 hours ago
- The National
‘I felt useless and needed to do something': UK MP on letter to triggering Palestine recognition move
A call from a friend in Gaza to an influential Labour MP was instrumental in Britain's historic move towards recognising the Palestinian state, she has told The National. Just days before the UK government announced its first steps in recognising the state, Sarah Champion received a phone call from a friend who told the politician that after months of struggling to find food in Gaza 'my family are just waiting to die', and everyone they knew felt the same. 'To lose hope is a horrific thing, I felt useless and knew I needed to do something to try and restore it,' Ms Champion told The National. The next steps she took were to have a decisive impact on Britain recognising Palestine as a sovereign nation and influencing President Donald Trump's view that starvation was genuine in Gaza. Had to act quickly The call taken by Ms Champion, chairwoman of Parliament's international development committee, was on Wednesday, July 23. The situation in Gaza was visibly deteriorating, with pictures of starving children shared on social media. There was a growing consensus to rein in Israel's actions, she felt, including its plans to further annex occupied West Bank territories. With parliament heading into summer recess Ms Champion had to act quickly if she was to maximise pressure on the government. She knew that very senior cabinet members − including the Foreign Secretary David Lammy − were dismayed by Israel's dismissal of their concerns and had been quietly lobbying Prime Minister Keir Starmer for Palestine recognition. If she could garner enough cross-bench parliamentary support then that could provide the impetus for a major political step. Message blitz Ms Champion and her team went to work sending WhatsApp messages and emails to fellow MPs to sign a letter that called on Mr Starmer to recognise Palestine. 'I was amazed how many we got, and in such a short space of time – just 30 hours – but I think it is a clear representation of the strength of feeling in Parliament in support of the Palestinian plight,' she said. The following night, France suddenly announced it would recognise Palestine, and by 5pm on the Friday she had amassed a record number of 221 signatures from MPs representing nine different parties. 'UK recognition would have a significant impact due to our historic connections and our membership on the UN Security Council, so we urge you to take this step,' the MPs said. Key to the gathering of signatures was the respect held by fellow MPs from all parties for Ms Champion, who has been consistently outspoken on the plight of Palestinians. With this in mind, Mr Starmer knew he had to respond quickly and while he did not immediately agree, he did use new language condemning Israel's 'disproportionate military escalation in Gaza' that was 'indefensible'. 'Set the agenda' However, with US President Donald Trump landing in Scotland just a few hours later, now was not the time to initiate a political earthquake. But having the American leader in Britain was useful as he would be meeting Mr Starmer on the Monday, by which time after continued weekend reports of the grim situation in Gaza, 255 MPs had now signed the letter. The letter, according to Ms Champion, had 'set the agenda for journalists when Trump came to the UK', and this made the President more aware of the dire situation. In the press conference with Mr Starmer, Mr Trump stated 'that's real starvation stuff, I see it, and you can't fake that,' adding 'we have to get the kids fed'. The letter had been 'a significant factor in his comments around believing starvation was occurring in Gaza', claims Ms Champion. Indication of urgency More important was the letter's impact on the British government's decision on July 29, just after Mr Trump left Scotland, to set out its steps towards recognition. 'The letter gave them an indication of the urgency, and I am glad they listened,' Ms Champion said. While Britain's move was met with fury from Israel, she argued that it sent a 'clear signal' that the UK believed 'Palestine is a viable state and needs to be treated as such; with all the protections and rights afforded to other nations'. 'To have a two-state solution, you have to have two states,' she added. 'And the Israeli cabinet needs to understand the status quo is neither acceptable nor going to continue.' Israel also needed to secure a ceasefire and work for a lasting peace that 'enables both countries to feel safe and respected', added the MP for Rotherham, in northern England. Britain, unless Israel meets certain conditions will now be joined by France, Canada, Australia and Malta at the UN General Assembly next month in recognising Palestine, taking the total of countries that do so to 152.
