It is a very public dressing down of Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. He rebukes Albanese for looking weak with his response to Hamas. In a wide-ranging recent interview posted on Sky News’ YouTube channel, Netanyahu dropped a whopper. He continued that Albanese’s legacy is now “irrevocably blackened” over his failure, as he sees it, to support Israel sufficiently during its attacks on civilians in Gaza.
Netanyahu went further, asserting that Albanese would be remembered as a “weak politician who betrayed Israel and abandoned Australia’s Jews.” His comments are made at a time of rapidly increasing tension between Israel and Australia, which have always been close allies. These relations have since soured dramatically after Australia, until now a comparatively neutral party, recognised Palestine, triggering what became a nasty diplomatic dispute.
The toll of the humanitarian crisis in Gaza is staggering. As of today, according to Gaza’s Ministry of Health, more than 62,000 Palestinians have died since Israel kicked off its military operations in response to Hamas’s attacks of October 7. The deteriorating situation has received mounting international attention. Now, even Israel’s closest allies are publicly worried about the humanitarian crisis that is unfolding in the region.
In this alleged controversy, Netanyahu condemned Hamas cofounder Sheikh Hassan Yousef for saying something that’s actually very uncontroversial. Writing in the Sydney Morning Herald, Yousef congratulated Albanese for his “political courage.” This reasoned statement was greeted with indignation by Israeli leaders, as it understandably undercuts the international campaign against terrorism.
In response to Netanyahu’s comments, Tony Burke, Australia’s Minister for Home Affairs, emphasized that true strength is “not measured by how many people you can blow up or how many children you can leave hungry.” This remark underscores Australia’s position amid growing discontent regarding Israel’s military actions.
The current tensions have not only shaped a new diplomatic landscape, but have prompted the two governments to take dramatic action against each other. Australia recently canceled a visa for Simcha Rothman, a far-right member of Netanyahu’s coalition government, citing concerns that his speaking tour aimed to “spread division.” In response, Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar responded by revoking visas for Australian diplomats to enter the Palestinian Authority.
In the face of this increasingly vitriolic rhetoric, Albanese has sought to play down the argy-bargy with Netanyahu. He told City & State that he’s tried not to take the criticism personally. The announcement signals his intention to try and nip this developing diplomatic rift in the bud.
They’re both trying to feel their way through this very dangerous and contentious relationship. It is unclear at this stage how this latest row will affect future diplomatic relations between Israel and Australia. This reality underscores the greater frustrations underlying the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. It reveals the ludicrousness of international relations in this context.
