Latest news with #twostatesolution
South China Morning Post
4 days ago
- Politics
- South China Morning Post
China calls for halt to ‘dangerous' Gaza siege as Israel weighs full takeover
China has called on Israel to 'immediately halt' its actions in the Gaza Strip while urging greater unity among Arab countries over the Palestinian territory, amid reports that Israel's prime minister and top security officials are weighing a full occupation of Gaza. A complete takeover, which reportedly would include areas where hostages might be held, would be a dramatic escalation of Israel's military operation, as a humanitarian crisis has deepened in recent weeks. Local health authorities have reported people being killed or injured by Israeli gunfire while waiting for restricted aid deliveries as international experts have warned of famine. Israel has accused Hamas, which runs the Gazan government, of looting food and other items. At a United Nations Security Council meeting on Tuesday, Geng Shuang, China's deputy permanent representative to the UN, urged Israel to 'immediately halt such dangerous actions', which he said Beijing was deeply concerned about. 'Fully implementing the two-state solution and achieving Palestinian independence is the only viable path to resolving the Palestinian issue and preventing similar hostage crises in the future,' Geng was quoted as saying by state news agency Xinhua.
Washington Post
31-07-2025
- Politics
- Washington Post
Even Israel's defenders are finally admitting the truth
Something is shifting. International pressure on Israel has reached a new peak as images of starving Palestinian children shock the conscience of even its longtime supporters. France declared plans to recognize a Palestinian state in September. Britain announced it is ready to follow suit, unless Israel agrees to a ceasefire and commits to a two-state solution.
Daily Mail
31-07-2025
- Politics
- Daily Mail
PETER VAN ONSELEN: Single photo says it all about Albo's little-known past as a pro-Palestine activist - as he considers a history-making change
Anthony Albanese didn't always speak like a diplomat. As a young MP he led protests, co-founded the Parliamentary Friends of Palestine, visited Gaza camps and accused Israel in Parliament of overreacting to teenage stone-throwers with grenades, tanks and aerial firepower. In 1998, he even sat down and met, with then-Liberal MP Joe Hockey, the Palestinian activist-turned-president Yasser Arafat. Today, the Prime Minister operates in a different mode: measured, cautious and concerned with at least the appearance of balance. He talks of 'humanitarian pauses', supports a two-state solution and frames discourse around Israel's security and Palestinian aspirations in the same sentence. That shift was deliberate. By 2011 he was criticising council boycotts of Israel as counterproductive. As he rose through Labor's ranks, his rhetoric softened, but only publicly. Behind the scenes, colleagues know Albo remains a firebrand when it comes to Palestine and Israel's treatment of Palestinians. But Albanese's past as an activist isn't without criticism, particularly when examined through a more mature and global lens. At times, his early focus on Israel-Palestine appeared ideologically selective, condemning Israel fiercely while giving far worse human rights abuses around the world a leave pass. China's repression of Uyghurs, Syria's war crimes, or Iran's theocratic brutality rarely drew the same passionate parliamentary speeches or solidarity tours. There's also a question of political convenience. His alignment with the Palestinian cause dovetailed neatly with the values of Labor's inner-city progressive base, a cohort that helped consolidate Albo's factional power. The line between moral conviction and political calculation was not always clear. His speeches from the late 90s and early 2000s often lacked diplomatic nuance. They presented the situation in Israel and Palestine in stark binaries, oppressed versus oppressor, with little acknowledgment of internal dysfunction within the Palestinian Authority, the regional threats facing Israel, or the moral complexity inherent in protracted conflict. And while Albo's tone has since evolved, the legacy of his earlier rhetoric lingers. For many in the Jewish-Australian community, memories of his past statements still shape perceptions today, creating a deficit of trust that symbolic gestures alone can't repair. Now, the old Albanese (hardline and outspoken) may be resurfacing in how he shapes national foreign policy towards Israel and Palestine. Internationally, Western nations are starting to shift positions: France has recognised Palestine, the UK and Canada are preparing to do the same. Labor's party platform endorses recognition. Jim Chalmers says it is a case of 'when, not if'. Albo has tried to frame any recognition as conditional. But will he stick to that if time passes and conditions remain unmet? The PM wants recognition to happen and may reach a point where he drops conditions in the name of expediency. Crucially, the Trump administration has emphasised point blank that recognition can only be considered following the remaining hostages being released. Under US policy, recognition before all hostages are freed would be seen as rewarding Hamas, and would complicate broader strategic diplomacy in the Middle East. Albanese is ready to move, but there are few signs the remaining 50 hostages are about to be let go. A split with Washington appears increasingly on the cards. Meanwhile, the PM has made symbolic gestures to reassure the Jewish community at home, increasing funding for Jewish school security. But moving to recognise Palestine before all the hostages are freed could be politically risky at home. Islamic and progressive communities would view recognition as overdue leadership, but Jewish-Australians overwhelmingly would not. They are more likely to see it as premature, and the Opposition would certainly raise the political stakes in a bid to ensure the mainstream agrees. Albanese's activist instincts once shaped his politics. Now they are hidden behind diplomatic wording. The real question is: which version of Albo will prevail? The old political combatant who demanded justice?
The National
31-07-2025
- Politics
- The National
Arab nations back 2002 peace proposal at UN two-state solution conference
Arab League states issued a unified call backing a peace initiative proposed in 2002 at this week's UN conference on a two-state solution for Israel and Palestine co-chaired by Saudi Arabia and France. The Arab Peace Initiative offers full normalisation of ties between Israel and the Arab world in exchange for a complete withdrawal from territories occupied since 1967, a just solution for Palestinian refugees under UN General Assembly Resolution 194, and the establishment of a sovereign Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital. Israel has long rejected the proposal. 'What we're seeing today in Gaza, the withdrawal of stability and security in the region, is indeed the outcome of the ongoing occupation,' Arab League chief Ahmed Aboul Gheit said in a statement delivered to the conference by a spokesperson. 'This is the price being paid by Palestinians, a price paid in blood.' He added that the Arab League remains committed to the peace initiative proposed by Saudi Arabia and adopted at its summit in Beirut 23 years ago. 'This vision hasn't, however, been reciprocated,' Mr Aboul Gheit said. 'Rather, it has been countered by arrogance and nationalism based on religious sectarian views that will lead the region to an unknown future.' Arab and Muslim countries at the UN conference in New York also joined a growing chorus of states calling on Hamas to disarm and relinquish control in Gaza, signalling rising frustration with the group. 'In the context of ending the war in Gaza, Hamas must end its rule … and hand over its weapons to the Palestinian Authority, with international engagement and support, in line with the objective of a sovereign and independent Palestinian state,' read a joint declaration. Kuwait's Minister of Foreign Affairs Abdullah Ali Al Yahya said that extending the PA's authority over all Palestinian territory was 'a fundamental step in building an independent Palestinian state '. Khalifa Al Marar, UAE Minister of State at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, called for international efforts to stop the war in Gaza and the adoption of a 'clear, binding and irreversible road map' to establish an independent, sovereign Palestinian state. 'Every day that passes without a solution deepens the wounds and distances the chances of peace,' he warned. Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Mustafa appealed for the UN conference to be 'a turning point in which positions and declarations are translated into immediate and unprecedented practical steps to stop the genocide and end the Israeli occupation'. 'The world must act to stop the aggression, starvation and displacement, and send a clear message: Enough disregard for the life and dignity of Palestinians – Palestinians are human beings,' he said. Abdoulkader Houssein Omar, Djibouti's Minister for Foreign Affairs and International Co-operation, said any lasting settlement of the Arab-Israeli conflict 'cannot forgo' the foundation laid by the 2002 Arab Peace Initiative, which he described as a 'constructive, balanced framework' and an 'unavoidable model' for a just and comprehensive solution consistent with international law. The UN conference aimed to resurrect long-stalled peace efforts and pave the way towards an independent Palestinian state. Foreign ministers from 15 nations, including Canada, Australia and New Zealand, issued a joint declaration on Tuesday expressing their willingness to recognise a Palestinian state and their commitment to a two-state solution. Out of 193 member states of the UN, 143 already recognise the State of Palestine, which has observer status at the world body.
The National
31-07-2025
- Politics
- The National
Latest: US special envoy Witkoff to meet Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu
Arab nations back 2002 peace proposal at UN two-state solution conference Lebanon's President Aoun urges political parties to give up arms Israeli attack kills at least 15 people waiting for aid in central Gaza Canada and Malta plan to recognise Palestinian state At least 60,249 Palestinians killed and 147,089 wounded since Gaza war began
