Australian PM: Israel clearly in breach of international law; we won’t imminently recognize Palestinian state

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese says Israel “quite clearly” breached international law and “decent humanity and morality” by withholding aid from Gaza in March, saying images of starving Gazans “break the heart,” while also calling Hamas terrorists who are holding the Gazan population hostage as well by refusing to release the 50 Israeli and foreign captives it is holding.

In an interview with public broadcaster ABC, Albanese also says Canberra doesn’t plan to “imminently” recognize a Palestinian state, as France has said it will do.

“You need to recognize a Palestinian state as part of moving forward. How do you exclude Hamas from any involvement there? How do you ensure that a Palestinian state operates in an appropriate way which does not threaten the existence of Israel?” he stresses.

“And so we won’t do any decision as a gesture, we will do it as a way forward if the circumstances are met,” he continues. “Is the time right now? Are we about to imminently do that? No, we are not… But we will engage constructively.”

Asked about Israel allowing and conducting airdrops of aid into Gaza, Albanese says it’s “a start,” but more must be done to protect civilians.

“A one-year-old boy is not a Hamas fighter. The civilian casualties and deaths in Gaza are completely unacceptable. It’s completely indefensible,” he says.

“We have rules of engagement and they are there for a reason. They are to stop innocent lives being lost… Quite clearly, it is a breach of international law to stop food being delivered, which was a decision that Israel made in March,” he adds. “International law says that you can’t hold innocent people responsible for what is a conflict.”