Australia is the latest country to condemn comments made by Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, in which he said the starvation of Gazans could be “just and moral”.
The far-right minister said Israel had “no choice” but to send humanitarian aid into Gaza while speaking at a conference in support of Jewish settlements on Monday.
“It’s not possible in today’s global reality to manage a war — no one will allow us to starve two million people, even though that might be just and moral until they return the hostages,” Smotrich said.
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Foreign Minister Penny Wong today joined international voices condemning the remark, warning that the deliberate starvation of civilians is a war crime.
“There is no justification for it, ever,” she said in a statement posted to X.
“An immediate ceasefire in Gaza has never been more urgent, to protect civilians, see hostages released, and enable aid to flow.
“We repeat our call on all parties to agree to an immediate ceasefire.”
https://twitter.com/SenatorWong/status/1822032759076082150
Smotrich, a key partner in Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s governing coalition, supports the reoccupation of Gaza, the rebuilding of Jewish settlements that were removed in 2005 and what he describes as the voluntary migration of large numbers of Palestinians out of the territory.
His comments raised concerns among the European Union, the United Kingdom, Germany, France and Egypt, who all earlier this week echoed that the deliberate starvation of civilians is a war crime.
EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell called the remarks “beyond ignominious”, saying “it demonstrates, once again, his contempt for international law and for basic principles of humanity”.
Britain’s new foreign secretary David Lammy said “there can be no justification for Minister Smotrich’s remarks”.
“We expect the wider Israeli government to retract and condemn them,” he said on X.
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France’s foreign ministry voiced “profound consternation” over the “disgraceful remarks”, reiterating that Israel has an obligation under international humanitarian law to provide aid to Gaza — a “blockaded territory where Israel controls all the access points”.
Germany’s ambassador to Israel Steffen Siebert called the remarks “unacceptable and appalling”.
“It is a principle of international law and of humanity to protect civilians in a war and to give them access to water and food,” he said on X.
Egypt’s foreign ministry described the comments as “shameful statements unacceptable in form and substance” and a violation of international humanitarian law, adding that such “irresponsible statements” create incitement against Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.
The ongoing war sparked by Hamas’ attack has plunged Gaza into a humanitarian catastrophe.
The vast majority of its population has been displaced within the blockaded territory, often multiple times, and hundreds of thousands are packed into squalid tent camps.
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The leading international authority on the severity of hunger crises, the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification, said in June that Gaza was at “high risk” of famine.
Aid organisations have said efforts to deliver food and other assistance have been hindered by Israeli restrictions, ongoing fighting and the breakdown of law and order.
Israel says it allows unlimited humanitarian aid to enter and blames United Nations agencies for failing to promptly deliver it.
Hamas-led militants killed about 1200 people in the surprise October 7 attack on Israel that triggered the war and took around 250 hostages.
Some 110 hostages are still being held in Gaza, though Israel believes that about a third of them are dead.
Most of the rest were released during a week-long ceasefire in November.
Israel’s ongoing offensive has killed almost 40,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, and has caused widespread devastation.
— With Associated Press
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