Australia votes for Palestinian sovereignty in occupied territories

The Albanese government has shifted Australia’s vote in the UN to recognise the “permanent sovereignty” of Palestinians over the occupied territories and of Arabs over the Golan Heights, sharpening its differences with the Biden and incoming Trump administrations on Israel.

Australia had abstained on the same question in UN votes since 2011, but switched its vote to “Yes” in a UN committee ballot on Thursday morning AEDT that will proceed to a vote in the General Assembly.

The resolution, on “Permanent sovereignty of the Palestinian people in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, and of the Arab population in the occupied Syrian Golan over their natural resources, including land, water and energy resources”, was approved by 159-7 with 11 abstentions.

Australia also changed its position on a second question that seeks to blame Israel for a historic oil slick affecting Lebanon during the countries’ 2006 conflict, voting “Yes” after rejecting past resolutions on the matter. The motion was carried by 161-7 with nine abstentions.

The US and Canada voted against both resolutions, while the UK and New Zealand supported them.

The votes, in the second committee stage of deliberations, follow the government’s decision to break with the US earlier this year to support Palestinian membership of the UN General Assembly, and on two key UN resolutions on the war in Gaza.

The Zionist Federation of Australia said it was alarmed by the decision.

“This is nothing less than an abandonment of Australia’s ally, the only democracy in the Middle East, at the very time it is fighting an existential, multi-front war against Iran and its proxies, which began with Hamas’ unprovoked and barbaric attack of October 7, 2023.

“It is unprincipled for the Albanese Government, at this time, to cast Australia’s support for Palestinian sovereignty, before the removal of Hamas and Hezbollah. This rewards terrorism and the enemies of peace.”

The ZFA noted the resolution on Palestinian sovereignty opposes the construction of the security fence separating Gaza from Israel, which it said “has saved thousands of lives — a barrier that was tragically breached by Hamas on 7 October leading to the largest loss of Jewish life in a single day since the Holocaust. Without the fence that was opposed by this resolution, the death toll in Israel could have reached unimaginable levels”.

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Australia backs ‘permanent sovereignty’ of Palestinians in UN vote (The Australian, paywall)