Tuesday, 17 October 2023

Middle East conflict

Chris CREWTHER (Mornington) (19:18): (379) My adjournment matter is for the Premier. The action I seek is for the Premier to investigate how the government can better support local community members impacted by recent events in Israel and Gaza, including by ensuring the safety of our Jewish community and the investigation, arrest, charging and prosecution of those inciting violence, supporting proscribed terrorist organisation Hamas or engaging in any other potential criminal activity.

On 7 October and since we have seen barbaric Hamas-led terrorist attacks in Israel, resulting in the biggest loss of Jewish life since the Holocaust. We have seen bombings and the rape, kidnapping, burning and murder of so many men, women, children, babies and grandparents, many being innocent civilians going about their lives in a kibbutz, at a music festival and in their family homes. Children have been shot, young women raped and murdered, people burned alive, hostages taken. The video of young Shani from the music festival, with terrorists parading and spitting on her deceased, mostly naked body with her broken leg, sticks in my head. Locally, a Jewish friend also told me of his rabbi’s wife’s cousin, who was murdered, with her severed arm with wedding ring found.

I support Israel’s right to defend itself against Hamas on Israeli soil and within Gaza and elsewhere to target Hamas and their military infrastructure, including to stop further attacks and try to free hostages. Hamas must free all remaining 199 hostages. With the subsequent conflict arising from Hamas’s actions, I also mourn innocent Palestinian and other lives in Gaza, where people have been displaced and innocent lives lost, particularly of women and children. I hope that best efforts are put in by all to avoid more civilian casualties.

Injustice breeds injustice, and I do not want to see innocent lives lost or civilians scared for their survival, Israelis and Palestinians alike. Hamas must also no longer use civilians or hostages to defend terrorist infrastructure and as human shields. I have also been disgusted with some people locally at protests chanting things like ‘Gas the Jews’ – something that since the Holocaust we should never hear – targeted at all Jews, not just Israelis or Israeli Jews; or actively supporting Hamas, a prescribed terrorist organisation; or neo-Nazis trying to target Jews on our trains. I have Jewish friends now afraid to go out or to send their kids to school. One has said he is organising to leave Australia with his family despite being born here, citing danger and a mass rise in antisemitism. On the train yesterday to Parliament I observed a person of Jewish faith proudly wearing his yarmulke, as he should be able to, but I could tell he was nervous. No-one here should feel unsafe.

On these points, and particularly as the Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Justice and Corrections, I reiterate to the Premier that we must work together to ensure the safety of our Jewish community; we must enhance active police presence at future protests and arrest and charge those inciting violence or engaging in criminal activity; and we must support identifying and charging people who have done that in the past.