Australia to recognize Palestinian state at United Nations General Assembly: prime minister

Australia will recognize a Palestinian state at the United Nations General Assembly in September, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said Monday.

Albanese called the crisis in Gaza a “humanitarian catastrophe,” after his government had criticized Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for a new military offensive in the strip, The Associated Press reported.

The Australian prime minister said that his country's decision to recognize a Palestinian state will be formalized at the UN General Assembly, and was “predicated on commitments Australia has received from the Palestinian Authority.”

Commitments from the PA included no role for Hamas in a Palestinian government, demilitarization of Gaza and the holding of elections, Albanese said.

“A two-state solution is humanity’s best hope to break the cycle of violence in the Middle East and to bring an end to the conflict, suffering and starvation in Gaza,” he explained.

“The situation in Gaza has gone beyond the world’s worst fears,” Albanese added. “The Israeli government continues to defy international law and deny sufficient aid, food and water to desperate people, including children.”

Australia has designated Hamas a terrorist organization, and Albanese said again Monday that his government calls for the group to return Israeli hostages held since Oct. 7, 2023.

Prior to Albanese's announcement, Netanyahu criticized Australia and other European countries that said they will recognize a Palestinian state. The United Kingdom, France, and Canada have announced their plans to formalize the recognition at the UN General Assembly in September.

“To have European countries and Australia march into that rabbit hole ... this canard, is disappointing and I think it’s actually shameful,” Netanyahu said.

“This is an opportunity to deliver self-determination for the people of Palestine in a way that isolates Hamas, disarms it and drives it out of the region once and for all,” Albanese said, adding that Hamas did not support a two-state solution.

Thus far, nearly 150 of the 193 members of the UN have already recognized Palestine as a state.

New Zealand Foreign Minister Winston Peters said Monday that his government “will carefully weigh up its position” on recognizing a Palestinian state before making a formal decision in September.

“New Zealand has been clear for some time that our recognition of a Palestinian state is a matter of when, not if,” Peters said in a statement.