Former industry and science minister Ed Husic has called on the Albanese government to establish a 'red line' on Israel's actions, including tougher sanctions, an end to defence cooperation, and a block on supplying parts for the F-35 fighter jet. The Labor MP for Chifley said Australia had tolerated poor behaviour from the Israeli government for too long, citing the mistreatment of activists from the Global Sumud Flotilla, the death of Australian aid worker Zomi Frankcom, and the destruction of Australian war graves.
'We've issued statements, and they've been important in terms of flagging our view, but at some point the statements have got to end and the action needs to begin,' Husic told Guardian Australia. He noted growing disquiet among Labor MPs, particularly after Israel's national security minister, Itamar Ben-Gvir, taunted detained flotilla activists last week. Foreign Minister Penny Wong called in Israel's ambassador over the incident, and Prime Minister Anthony Albanese condemned the actions.
Israel has denied allegations of mistreatment, claiming all detainees were held 'in accordance with the law'. Ambassador Hillel Newman said the flotilla members were handled with 'great sensitivity'. Ben-Gvir was sanctioned by Australia in June 2025 for inciting violence against Palestinians in the West Bank.
Husic expressed concern that history would not look favourably on Australia and the international community for failing to act on warnings of potential genocide in Gaza. Israel has rejected the genocide charge, citing self-defence after the Hamas attack on 7 October 2023. The subsequent war has killed more than 64,000 people, mostly civilians.
He called for Australia to work with the European Union to coordinate tougher sanctions, now that former Hungarian leader Viktor Orban is out of power. 'I've said we should just ban any trade with illegal settlements, because we're effectively propping them up,' Husic said. 'I've said that the defence cooperation that we do with them should end, particularly considering that ICJ has taken a view of plausible genocide.'
On the F-35 program, Husic said the government was hiding behind the complexity of the arrangement. Defence Minister Richard Marles told Labor MPs the F-35 capability was 'at the heart' of the Royal Australian Air Force's operations and restricting trade would be challenging due to treaty obligations. 'Enough is enough,' Husic said. 'We should just say we are not going to supply those parts.' He also called for tracking dual nationals returning from Israel who may have been involved in the conflict.
