Five Things Australia Must Do To Stop Israel’s Genocide in Gaza

Israel’s genocide in Gaza is real. Over 100,000 Palestinians have been killed. The majority are women and children. Entire families have been erased. Food and water have been cut off. Hospitals and schools bombed. This is collective punishment on an unimaginable scale. It continues in plain sight.

Over 90,000 Australians just marched across the Sydney Harbour Bridge to say enough! So what should our Government be doing beyond its carefully crafted and rehearsed diplomatic language that evades moral clarity and responsibility?

Here are five clear, urgent actions Australia must take to be on the right side of history.

1. Recognise the State of Palestine

More than 140 countries already do. Recognition doesn’t solve everything, but it’s a necessary step toward equality, dignity, and lasting peace. Our refusal to recognise Palestinian statehood sustains the status quo. It’s time we joined Ireland, Spain, Norway, and the majority of the world’s countries in affirming Palestinians’ right to exist as a people, on their land, with sovereignty.

2. Apply Full Trade and Arms Sanctions on Israel

Australia continues to export defence materials used in Israeli military systems that bomb Gaza. This must stop. Comprehensive trade and arms sanctions are a nonviolent way of exerting pressure. They worked to help end apartheid in South Africa, and they can work again. It’s the least we can do to ensure we’re not profiting from, or enabling, crimes against humanity.

3. Expel Israel’s Ambassador

Diplomatic representation is a privilege, not a right. Continuing normal diplomatic relations in the face of overwhelming evidence of genocide is complicity. Expelling Israel’s ambassador would be a symbolic but powerful act that says: We do not accept this. Australia has expelled Russian diplomats over Ukraine. Why are we not applying the same standard to Israel?

4. Join the International Criminal Court Case

South Africa is leading a group of countries that have taken Israel to the International Court of Justice, accusing it of genocide. Australia should join too. We pride ourselves on supporting the rule of law, so let’s prove it by holding all nations to account, not just those outside our alliances.

5. Increase Humanitarian Aid and Open Our Doors to Refugees

Gaza is facing a full-blown humanitarian catastrophe. Australia must dramatically increase its aid - not just through the UN but via direct humanitarian organisations trusted on the ground. Like Médecines Sans Frontières. And we must create permanent resettlement pathways for displaced Palestinians. We’ve welcomed Ukrainian and Syrian refugees in times of crisis. Palestinians deserve the same compassion and support.

We don’t need to wait for permission from Washington. We don’t need to be silent out of fear. And we can’t sit on the sidelines while people starve, bleed, and die.

These five steps are the bare minimum. They won’t end the violence overnight. But they will send a clear message: we don’t support genocide. We stand for justice.

And right now, that matters more than ever.

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Photo from the World Health Organisation.