Arabic version: إسرائيل تعترض على مسودة برنامج حزب العمال بشأن فلسطين

According to The Guardian, the Israeli embassy in Canberra has publicly criticised Labor’s draft policy platform before the party’s national conference, saying parts of the proposed text risk placing responsibility for the Gaza conflict on Israel while giving insufficient attention to Hamas and Palestinian leadership.

The embassy issued a four-page statement on Monday addressing draft positions on Palestine, Hamas and settler violence in the West Bank. It said the motions remained in draft form and that it would continue engaging constructively with the Australian Labor Party through normal diplomatic channels. Foreign states do not often intervene in internal party matters such as a party conference.

Labor’s platform is considered at each triennial national conference and sets party positions across a range of issues. The 2026 draft language on Israel and Palestine differs substantially from the 2023 platform, which contained three lines focused on recognising a Palestinian state. The government formally adopted recognition of a Palestinian state last August.

The draft due to be debated in Adelaide includes opposition to the annexation of Palestinian territory and calls for an end to settler violence and the occupation. The Albanese government has condemned settler violence in the West Bank and joined other western nations last month in imposing new sanctions on perpetrators.

Israel’s embassy described settler violence as a “reprehensible but marginal phenomenon” that had received disproportionate attention. It also noted that wording stating Hamas must disarm and have no role in a Palestinian state was removed between an earlier draft and the final version, although the final draft identifies Hamas as a perpetrator of terrorism and violent extremism. Multicultural affairs minister Anne Aly said the embassy would do what it felt was right, while foreign affairs minister Penny Wong declined to comment.