The Australian government confirmed its policy on the Golan Heights after the foreign minister referred to the “city of Israel”.
London: The Australian government has reiterated its position that the Golan Heights are occupied territory, following recent statements by Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong, who referred to the area as “the northern city of Israel”.
Wong's comments, released in a statement on social networking sites X and Instagram, sparked a wave of backlash online over whether he acknowledged Israeli sovereignty over the region, which Israel captured from Syria in the 1967 Six-Day War.
This follows a rocket attack on the city's soccer field in the Golan Heights, which killed 12 children.
The controversy stemmed from Wang's post, which began with the statement: “Australia unequivocally condemns the attack on the northern Israeli town of Majdal Shams.” It should be mentioned that Golan Heights are not mentioned as occupied lands in this statement.
The omission prompted concern from groups such as the Australian Palestine Defense Network, which described the language used as “alarming” and stressed that international recognition of Israel's sovereignty over the Golan Heights is limited and largely only by Israel and the United States. The Trump administration has been recognized. .
In response, a spokesperson for the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade clarified that there had been no change in Australia's policy. “There is no change in our position that the Golan Heights are occupied by Israel, as determined by the UN Security Council,” the spokesman told Guardian Australia. Our long-standing position is that the Golan Heights is an issue that Israel and Syria must resolve through negotiations within the framework of a comprehensive peace solution.
A government source explained that Wong's statement was intended to emphasize the dangers of escalation and to condemn the attacks that resulted in civilian casualties in Majdal Shams. The post “acknowledged the fact that the city is administered and occupied by Israel,” the source added.
The issue gained further attention after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu visited Majdal Shams, a predominantly Druze village, where he vowed a “tough” response to a recent rocket attack that killed 12 children. Netanyahu's visit was met with protests by some local residents. Israeli and US officials have attributed the attack to Hezbollah, although the Lebanese militant group has denied involvement.
The international community has been challenging Israel's control of the Golan Heights for a long time. The United Nations Security Council resolution in November 1967 emphasized the “unacceptability of land acquisition by war” and demanded Israel's withdrawal from the occupied territories. Furthermore, in 1981, the Security Council unanimously declared that “Israel's decision to impose its laws, jurisdiction and administration on the occupied Syrian Golan Heights is null and void and has no international legal effect.”
In a significant departure from the international consensus, former US President Donald Trump announced in 2019 that the US would recognize Israel's sovereignty over the Golan Heights, a decision he said was necessary for Israel's security and regional stability. .
The situation has led to calls for clarity on Australia's position. Australian Greens foreign affairs spokesman Jordon Steele-John called on Minister Wong to reconcile his statement with the department's official policy, saying: “The public deserves to know why the minister's position appears to be at odds with his own department.”
The dispute arose following Australia's decision last August to officially describe the West Bank, East Jerusalem and Gaza as occupied Palestinian territories, aligning with international law and the positions of several allies, including Britain.
