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The Australia Palestine Advocacy Network (APAN) has today, 24 December, issued a statement condemning the government decision to invite Israeli President to the country.
“This decision represents a grave moral failure and a direct insult to the hundreds of thousands of Australians who have spent more than two years protesting Israel’s ongoing genocide of Palestinians and demanding accountability under international law;” the statement read.
APAN said, “President Herzog is not a symbolic or ceremonial figure. As Israel’s Head of State throughout its genocidal assault on Gaza, he has made public statements widely condemned as genocidal intent, including asserting that an “entire nation” bears responsibility and that “there are no innocent civilians in Gaza” – language that legitimises collective punishment and mass civilian killing.”
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It would be recalled that President Herzog was named in proceedings before the International Court of Justice for his incendiary remarks. He has also openly rejected Palestinian self-determination, declaring that a two-state solution would be a “reward to terrorists.”
APAN expressed concerns that Australians may be prevented from protesting Herzog’s visit and face criminal charges — “a dangerous escalation that erodes democratic freedoms to shield a visiting foreign leader from accountability.”
APAN concluded its statement asserting that “Australia must not welcome those who are active participants and proponents of Israel’s genocide and not reward war crimes with diplomatic invitations, nor suppress dissent to shield them from scrutiny.”
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This work by Middle East Monitor is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
