Home Secretary Clare O'Neil has backed Prime Minister Anthony Albanese's refusal to comment on The Hague prosecutor's demand for arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, his defense minister and three Hamas leaders for alleged war crimes.
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On Monday, the International Criminal Court's chief prosecutor, Karim Khan, said he believed Netanyahu, Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant and Hamas leaders Yahya Sinwar, Mohammed Deif and Ismail Haniyeh were criminally responsible for war crimes against civilians in the Gaza Strip and Israel.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese declined to comment on Tuesday, saying his government does not talk about judicial matters, a marked departure from US President Joe Biden, who criticized the warrants sought for Netanyahu and Gallant.
Speaking on a Seven's panel Sunrise this morning, O'Neil said it was not the government's practice to comment on judicial matters.
“Our big focus here is to try to influence the things we can influence here. You've seen Foreign Minister Penny Wong and the Prime Minister play an active role in calling for a humanitarian ceasefire in the region,” O'Neil said.
“I'm the Home Secretary and my big focus is really what's happening here in our country, making sure that the communities that are particularly affected by this conflict are supported and perhaps most importantly… making sure -me that we don't bring it. conflict here in Australia.”
Sharing the panel with O'Neil, Coalition finance spokeswoman Jane Hume said if Biden had no problem commenting on the case, Australia should follow the US position condemning the ICC for making an equivalence between Israel and Hamas.
“Our AUKUS partners seem to have no problem commenting on this ICC false equivalency. Joe Biden is certainly out and we should stand shoulder to shoulder with Joe Biden,” Hume said.
“This has been a terrible decision by the Chief Prosecutor of the ICC; if Joe Biden can get out, yes [UK Prime Minister] Rishi Sunak can come out, well why can't Anthony Albanese? The false equivalency is absurd and appalling.”
