The thousands of civilian deaths in Gaza from Israel’s bombing campaign are “indefensible”, minister Tony Burke has said, after Australia joined 27 other countries condemning Israel for denying humanitarian aid to Palestinians.
The international statement – signed by Australia, the United Kingdom, France, Canada, New Zealand and Japan among others – warned “the suffering of civilians in Gaza has reached new depths”.
It expressed horror at the deaths of hundreds of people at aid distribution sites through Gaza, and demanded Israel comply with its obligations under international humanitarian law.
“The Israeli government’s aid delivery model is dangerous, fuels instability and deprives Gazans of human dignity. We condemn the drip feeding of aid and the inhumane killing of civilians, including children, seeking to meet their most basic needs of water and food,” the statement said.
“It is horrifying that over 800 Palestinians have been killed while seeking aid. The Israeli government’s denial of essential humanitarian assistance to the civilian population is unacceptable.”
The statement pleads for the end of the war in Gaza and calls for the immediate and unconditional release of Israeli hostages “cruelly held captive by Hamas since 7 October 2023 [who] continue to suffer terribly”.
“A negotiated ceasefire offers the best hope of bringing them home and ending the agony of their families.”
Burke, Australia’s home affairs minister, said Australia wanted to see the war stop.
“We’ve seen too many images of children being killed, of horrific slaughter, of churches being bombed. The images that we’ve seen have been pretty clear that so much of this is indefensible and – as that statement referred to – aid being drip-fed in,” he told the ABC on Tuesday.
Palestinians gather at a food distribution point in Gaza City on 20 July. Photograph: Majdi Fathi/NurPhoto/Shutterstock
On Monday, Israel launched substantial air raids and a ground operation in Gaza, targeting Deir al-Balah, the main hub for humanitarian efforts in the devastated Palestinian territory, amid warnings of widening starvation.
The latest assault began a day after the highest death toll in 21 months inflicted by the Israeli military on desperate Palestinians seeking food aid, with at least 85 killed in what has become a grim and almost daily slaughter.
The UN food agency, the World Food Programme, said the majority of those killed on Sunday had gathered near the border fence with Israel in the hope of getting flour from a UN aid convoy when they were fired on by Israeli tanks and snipers.
But opposition leader Sussan Ley claimed “the most important thing” to note was the continuing detention of Israeli citizens by Hamas.
“Of course we want to see aid reach those who deserve it, but it is so important that Hamas, that has control, often over the flow of that aid, but certainly over the ongoing, completely unacceptable detention of those hostages, act in the interests of the people of Gaza,” she said.
Shadow education minister Jonno Duniam went further, saying it was an “alarming move” and “sad turn of events” for Australia to support the international statement. On Sky News, Duniam claimed the government had “ignored” Hamas, despite the statement explicitly calling for the immediate detention of Israeli hostages and condemning the terrorist group.
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Burke said the federal government hopes “something will break” the conflict in Gaza, voicing alarm over “the increasing sight of people being killed on their way simply to get food and water”.
“None of this changes the fact that the hostages need to be released, of course that needs to happen,” he said.
“What we are watching on the other side of the world is indefensible. The hostages still need to be released, but the war needs to end.”
On Monday afternoon, the Israeli foreign ministry rejected the joint statement, saying: “Hamas is the sole party responsible for the continuation of the war and the suffering on both sides. At these sensitive moments in the ongoing negotiations, it is better to avoid statements of this kind.”
Amir Maimon, Israel’s ambassador to Australia, wrote on X: “Israel rejects the joint statement published by a group of countries, including Australia, as it is disconnected from reality and sends the wrong message to Hamas.”
Federal parliament returns on Tuesday, with rallies and events to be held in Canberra calling on the government to do more to address the deteriorating humanitarian situation in Gaza. A coalition of aid groups including Amnesty International and Médecins Sans Frontières will hold a 24-hour vigil where speakers will read the names of more than 17,000 Palestinian children killed by Israeli forces in Gaza.
The Greens senator David Shoebridge is also expected to table an open letter to Anthony Albanese from more than 2,500 healthcare workers from across Australia urging stronger action to address the humanitarian crisis.
Responding to the international joint statement, Shoebridge wrote on X that it was “ a welcome, if extremely late, step”.
Independent senator David Pocock wrote: “While welcome, we need more than words from the international community to stop the killing of civilians in Gaza, especially those seeking aid.”
