Penny Wong (SA, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Foreign Affairs) Share this | Hansard source

First, I know both Mr Leibler and Ms Segal, and I have a great deal of respect for both of them. You would have seen my comments on Insiders, which were that we recognise the challenges that Israel faces because Hamas, as a terrorist organisation, does operate within civilian institutions. The point I also made, though, was that that does not obviate the application of international humanitarian law. I made a different point, which I think is important here. We know what Hamas is. Hamas is a terrorist organisation. Hamas is an organisation that has a stated aim which is the destruction of the State of Israel. Hamas has shown complete contempt for international law. We are a democracy, and so too is Israel. Because of who we are, we seek higher standards and we accept higher standards, and those standards include the application of international humanitarian— (Time expired)