Overview
- UN-appointed commissioner Chris Sidoti called for Australia to end all defence cooperation with Israel, close its Defence and Trade office in Jerusalem, expand sanctions, and stop Australian-made parts from reaching Israeli warplanes.
- A Human Rights Council report released earlier in September concluded Israel’s actions in Gaza amount to genocide, providing the legal basis for Sidoti’s warnings.
- Australia’s Defence Department says more than 70 local companies contribute to the global F-35 supply chain, and Sidoti noted Israel has used F-35s in Gaza, raising potential legal exposure if Australian components are involved.
- Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Defence Minister Richard Marles have pointed to Lockheed Martin’s management of the F-35 supply chain, while the government has so far imposed targeted sanctions on Israeli ministers Itamar Ben-Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich.
- Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has rejected the UN finding as baseless, and official tallies cite more than 65,000 people killed in Gaza, with Israel reporting 1,200 people killed and about 250 hostages taken by Hamas.