Varun Ghosh (WA, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

The armed conflict underway in the Middle East and in Iran creates a number of matters of urgency, both in that region and around the world. It is our hope that the people of Iran are able to reclaim their country and begin the process of rebuilding and recovery from the monstrous reign of Ayatollah Khamenei, who was part of an Iranian regime that engaged in oppression, atrocities and murder around the world.

Ayatollah Khamenei brutalised the people of Iran for decades. The brutality of that regime was evident in the systemic mass killing of protestors in the early part of 2026, with estimates of tens of thousands of people killed by that regime. Those crimes were broadcast all over the world, and they shocked the world. But they were emblematic of what this regime was willing to do to its own people in order to stay in power. Unlawful and mass killings were a common tool of the regime. It was a regime that killed protestors during the Woman, Life, Freedom protests in 2022, with reports of hundreds killed. The regime had used live ammunition against protestors before. In November 2019 it cracked down on protestors who were seeking their own freedom, seeking relief from the oppressions of the regime itself, and the estimated death toll on that occasion was more than 300.

In addition to the use of violence, the regime has cut off communications and internet access to millions in Iran to try to hide their atrocities and try to limit the ability of people to protest against the regime itself. The regime has tortured and abused prisoners, including political prisoners. It has deliberately blinded and maimed Iranian citizens and has routinely executed those it regarded as its opponents, those it took into custody as political prisoners, and an array of others who were arbitrarily selected for violence by this regime.

The regime has created a culture of fear within Iran, and its citizens have not known freedom for generations. The regime has also sponsored and fomented terrorism and violence around the world, including here in Australia. Senator Paterson referred to the two attacks, including that terrible attack on the Adass synagogue in Melbourne, a result of the activities of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, who were implicated in that attack, an antisemitic attack and an act of state sponsored terrorism.

As Prime Minister Albanese has said, the Iranian regime has shown in recent days why it remains a threat to peace and stability in the region. It has engaged in a series of almost endless attacks, including against residential areas, areas frequented by tourists, and airports, which reduced the ability of people to leave those areas. We've seen it on the news. It's almost unthinkable, the extent to which they are arbitrarily and indiscriminately firing on different parts of the country and a range of different countries in the region.

The strikes against Iran were initiated and conducted by the United States and Israel, and the government supports acting to prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon and from continuing to threaten international peace and security in the region. The world has long recognised that Iran's nuclear program poses a threat to international peace and security and that Iran can never be allowed to develop a nuclear weapon. That would be a disastrous outcome from a humanitarian and security perspective. We know that Iran has contravened its nuclear non-proliferation and safeguards obligations a number of times.

The government's priority is to keep the 115,000 or so Australians currently in the region safe. That is what the government's focus is. That's from the Prime Minister, the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade and the ministry down. We do not want to see a further regional escalation, and we condemn the attacks on civilians that the Iranian government has undertaken. As a good and active middle power, Australia is in contact with our international partners, including in the region, and is using every effort to help Australians who are stranded get back home.

We stand with the brave people of Iran in their struggle against an oppressive regime. Our thoughts are with all Australians impacted by those events, particularly those who have family and loved ones in the region, including me. We say that there are matters of urgency at stake here. Peace in the region is a matter of urgency. The end of a tyrant and the end of a repressive regime is a matter of urgency, and so is improving prospects for peace around the world.