“Australia must call for a ceasefire in Gaza, condemn the Israeli government’s decades long apartheid policies in the West Bank and Gaza and put sanctions on Israel,” writes KATHRYN KELLY.

Palestinians in Gaza are facing “plausible genocide” at the hands of the Israeli government, as the International Court of Justice has ruled. 

As of the end of February, 1.9 million people – 85 per cent of Palestinians in Gaza – have been displaced, 70 per cent of Gaza homes have been destroyed, and around 30,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children, have been killed. 

People are starving and medical care is virtually non-existent, with operations being conducted without anaesthesia. The misery is unimaginable.

The killings of 1200 Israelis by Hamas on October 7 must be investigated and those responsible held accountable for the war crimes. But the responses by Israel to those events are completely disproportionate. 

The origins of the conflict go back decades before October 2023, to the establishment of Israel and the fleeing in terror, and displacement of around 750,000 Palestinians, in the 1948 war. 

Since that time, the Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza have been subject to harsh apartheid conditions and in Gaza, they have been subject to a blockade since 2007, effectively being kept in an open air prison. 

Recently, Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu stated that he will not allow a Palestinian state, making clear the decades long Israeli agenda – to take all the land from the Jordan River to the Mediterranean Sea, which encompasses the West Bank and Gaza, and to expel the Palestinians. 

How has the Australian government responded to this appalling situation? It has followed the US lead and refused to clearly condemn the Israeli government’s attacks in Gaza – the US is the biggest supporter of Israel, giving it billions in military aid each year. 

Both governments fail to express support for South Africa’s case of genocide in the International Court of Justice and have frozen funding to the aid agency UNRWA, when Gazans desperately need more aid. Why is Australia taking this position?

The US government and its military has had undue influence in Australia ever since World War II and the building of the spy base, Pine Gap, near Alice Springs. Meant to be a joint base, Australian parliamentarians have to get permission to visit. 

Most people working there are American. Undue US influence saw Australia join the illegal war on Iraq and the decades long war in Afghanistan – neither of which were in Australia’s interests. Arms manufacturers hold huge sway in America – employing hundreds of thousands of people and influencing foreign policy. The US sway over Australia’s government distorts our government’s policy decisions. 

Now, with the AUKUS agreement, US influence in Australia is increasing and the Australian government is rushing ahead with militarisation, which entails loss of our sovereignty. 

It has allocated $368 billion for nuclear-powered submarines and is funding Lockheed Martin’s long-range missile production here. 

It has allowed the US military to use large swathes of the NT for their marines and expansion of airports and other facilities aimed at “deterring China”. 

Both Labor and Liberal politicians perpetuate the myth that Australia needs the US nuclear umbrella to protect us. They follow the US lead in their disastrous war exploits and in supporting the Israeli government regardless of the war crimes they are committing in Gaza and the West Bank. 

Australia must call for a ceasefire in Gaza, reinstate the funding for UNRWA, develop a more neutral or non-aligned foreign policy, condemn the Israeli government’s decades long apartheid policies in the West Bank and Gaza, and put sanctions on Israel. 

Kathryn Kelly is convenor of the Independent and Peaceful Australia Network, ACT branch, which is hosting a forum on March 12 and a rally at Parliament House on March 18.