13/08/2025

WEDNESDAY | AUG 13, 2025

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Australia prime minister criticises Netanyahu’s stance

New Zealand politician removed from parliament Zealand parliamentarian Chloe Swarbrick (pic) was ordered to leave parliament yesterday during a heated debate over the government’s response to Palestine. An urgent debate was called after the centre-right government said on WELLINGTON: New leader of the Green Party, said New Zealand was a “laggard” and an “outlier” and the lack of decision was appalling before calling on some government members to support a Bill to “sanction Israel for its war crimes”. The Bill was proposed by her party in March and is supported by all opposition parties. “If we find six of 68 government MPs with a spine, we can stand on the right side of history,” said Swarbrick. Speaker Gerry Brownlee said that statement was “completely unacceptable” and she had to withdraw it and apologise. When she refused, Swarbrick was ordered to leave parliament. Brownlee later clarified Swarbrick could return today but if she still refused to apologise she would again be removed from parliament. New Zealand has said it will make a decision next month about whether it would recognise Palestine as a state. Foreign Minister Winston Peters told parliament that over the next month the government would gather information and talk to partners, which would inform Cabinet’s decision. “We’ll be weighing this decision carefully rather than rushing to judgment,” Peters said. Along with the Green Party, opposition parties Labour and Te Pati Maori support recognition of a Palestinian state. Labour parliamentarian Peeni Henare said New Zealand had a history of standing strong on its principles and values and in this case “was being left behind”. – Reuters S’pore deploys aircraft for airdrop SINGAPORE: The city-state deployed a C-130 transport aircraft to Jordan on Monday to deliver humanitarian aid. Its Defence Ministry said the Republic of Singapore Air Force C-130 carried medical supplies and food supplies. “Fifty-eight defence and military personnel were deployed in support of these operations,” the ministry said. This marks the second time the C-130 will be used to airdrop humanitarian aid. Senior Minister of State for Defence Zaqy Mohamad said: “This is one way to show how the whole community rallies together to show compassion and shows how it brings together all Singaporeans.” Acting Minister-in-charge of Muslim Affairs, Associate Professor Faishal Ibrahim thanked the Muslim community and all Singaporeans for their generosity, compassion and prayers. “Every act of giving is a light in the darkness for someone in need. Let us continue to keep Gaza in our prayers, support humanitarian initiatives, and work towards a future of peace, safety and dignity for all,” he said. Singapore and its citizens have contributed nine tranches of humanitarian assistance to Gaza, totalling over S$22 million (RM72 million). – Bernama Monday it was weighing up its position on whether to recognise a Palestinian state. Swarbrick, who is co

o Clark raps lack of action by New Zealand

wanting to see an imminent end to the humanitarian crisis in Gaza,” said Jessica Genauer, a senior lecturer in international relations at Flinders University. Opposition leader Ley said the decision was “disrespectful” of key ally the United States, which opposes Palestinian statehood. “We would never have taken this step because this is completely against what our principles are, which is that recognition, the two-state solution, comes at the end of the peace process, not before,” she said in an interview with radio station 2GB. New Zealand has said it is still considering whether to recognise a Palestinian state, a decision that drew sharp criticism from former prime minister Helen Clark yesterday. “This is a catastrophic situation, and here we are in New Zealand somehow arguing some fine point about whether we should recognise we need to be adding our voice to the need for this catastrophe to stop,” she said in an interview with state broadcaster RNZ. “This is not the New Zealand I’ve known.” – Reuters

involvement in any future state. Right-leaning opposition leader Sussan Ley said the move, which breaks with long-held bipartisan policy over Israel and the Palestinian territories, risked jeopardising Australia’s relationship with the United States. Albanese said as little as two weeks ago he would not be drawn on a timeline for recognition of a Palestinian state. His incumbent centre-left Labor Party, which won an increased majority at a general election in May, has previously been wary of dividing public opinion in Australia, which has significant Jewish and Muslim minorities. But the public mood has shifted sharply after Israel said it planned to take military control of Gaza, amid increasing reports of hunger and malnutrition among its people. Tens of thousands of demonstrators marched across Sydney’s Harbour Bridge this month calling for aid deliveries in Gaza as the humanitarian crisis worsened. “This decision is driven by popular sentiment in Australia which has shifted in recent months, with a majority of Australians

SYDNEY: Australia Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said yesterday his Israeli counterpart Benjamin Netanyahu was “in denial” about the humanitarian situation in Gaza. Albanese said yesterday the Netanyahu government’s reluctance to listen to its allies contributed to Australia’s decision to recognise a Palestinian state. “He again reiterated to me what he has said publicly as well, which is to be in denial about the consequences that are occurring for innocent people,” Albanese said in an interview with state broadcaster ABC, recounting a Thursday phone call with Netanyahu discussing the issue. Australia’s decision to recognise a Palestinian state is conditional on commitments received from the Palestinian Authority, including that Hamas would have no

Al Jazeera staff gather at their office in Doha to remember their fallen colleagues. – REUTERSPIC

UN, media groups condemn deadly strike on journos GAZA CITY: Condemnations poured in from the United Nations, the EU and media rights groups on Monday after an Israeli strike killed an Al Jazeera news team in Gaza, as Palestinians mourned the journalists and Israel accused one of them of being a militant. it labelled a “terrorist” affiliated with Hamas, alleging he “posed as a journalist”. Al Jazeera said four other employees – correspondent Mohammed Qreiqeh, and cameramen Ibrahim Zaher, Mohammed Noufal and Moamen Aliwa – were killed when the strike hit a tent set up for journalists outside the main gate of Al-Shifa. Sharif was one of Al Jazeera’s most recognisable faces working in Gaza. Media freedom groups have condemned the Israeli strike on journalists, which the UN human rights agency called a “grave breach of international humanitarian law”. Al Jazeera said the strike followed “repeated incitement” and calls by Israeli officials to target Sharif and his colleagues.

Dozens of Gazans stood amid bombed-out buildings in the courtyard of Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City to pay their respects to Anas al-Sharif, a prominent Al Jazeera correspondent aged 28, and four of his colleagues killed on Sunday. Hospital director Mohammed Abu Salmiya said a sixth journalist, freelance reporter Mohammed Al-Khaldi, was killed in the strike that targeted the Al Jazeera team. Mourners including men wearing blue journalists’ flak jackets carried their bodies, wrapped in white shrouds with their faces exposed, through narrow alleys to their graves. Israel confirmed it had targeted Sharif, whom

An Israeli military statement accused Sharif of heading a “terrorist cell” and being “responsible for advancing rocket attacks”. The military released documents alleging to show the date of Sharif’s enlistment with Hamas in 2013, an injury report from 2017 and the name of his military unit and rank. According to local journalists who knew him, Sharif had worked at the start of his career with a Hamas communication office, where his role was to publicise events organised by the group that has ruled the Gaza Strip since 2006.

Reporters Without Borders says nearly 200 journalists have been killed in the war since October 2023 attack on Israel. Israel prevents international reporters from entering Gaza, except on occasional tightly controlled trips with the military. The strike on the news team in Gaza City came days after the Israeli security Cabinet approved plans to send troops into the area, a decision met with mounting domestic and international criticism. – AFP