Key Points
- Australia is being urged to follow the US in placing sanctions on four Israeli settlers accused of violence.
- US President Joe Biden said violence against Palestinian civilians in the West Bank had reached "intolerable levels".
- Foreign Minister Penny Wong held talks with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Friday.
The top diplomats in Australia and the US have held talks about the ongoing crisis in the Middle East after the White House slapped sanctions on four Israeli settlers accused of violence in the West Bank.
Australia is being urged to follow the move, which one Middle East expert said would be in line with the government's condemnation of settler violence and opposition to illegal Israeli settlements.
"This is a breakthrough because it's one of the very few times the US officially recognises Israeli settler terrorism against Palestinians in the West Bank," Australian National University lecturer Anas Iqtait told AAP.
"Should Australia follow suit? Of course, this is about 40, 50 years too late."
Given Australia recognises the West Bank as an occupied territory and Israeli settlements are illegal under international law, sanctioning "individuals who have been committing terrorism" was appropriate, Iqtait said.
This comes off the back of 2023 being the most violent year of Israeli settler violence that resulted in Palestinian property damage or injury, he said.
"The Israeli legal system persistently fails to bring people to account or to stop these phenomena," Iqtait said.
"So sanctioning ... should not be a controversial issue."
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken issued a similar statement, saying Israel "must do more to stop violence against civilians in the West Bank and hold accountable those responsible for it".
Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong held talks with Blinken on Friday (AEDT) about their recent trips to the Middle East.
Tens of millions of dollars of pledged aid will still make it to people in Gaza despite Australia pausing funding to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees (UNRWA), Wong said.
Tel Aviv wants the organisation disbanded but the foreign minister has lauded the vital humanitarian work it conducts.
It was the and assistance into the occupied Palestinian territories, Wong said.
The humanitarian situation was dire with 400,000 Gazans starving and a million more at risk of starvation, she said, pointing to UN figures.
Wong has directed Australia's humanitarian co-ordinator to work with partner nations and the agency to ensure assistance gets into Gaza while the "deeply concerning allegations" were investigated.
Grants announced for Australians harmed in Hamas attack
Australians who were harmed or lost a close family member in the Hamas attack on Israel are set to receive payments of up to $75,000 after it was declared a terror event.
The federal government made the terror declaration on Friday evening, paving the way for Australians to receive payments previously offered after events including the 11 September attacks on America.
Labor has been accused of dragging its feet in facilitating the government funding.
The Executive Council of Australian Jewry has previously said the decision not to declare the event a terrorist act perplexing and difficult to comprehend.
