Israel’s Netanyahu Says ‘Weak’ Australian PM Abandoned Jewish Community

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Tuesday his Australian counterpart Anthony Albanese had forsaken Australia’s Jewish community and betrayed Israel, a remark that may further strain diplomatic ties tested by the war in Gaza.

Netanyahu‘s comment followed Israel’s revocation of the visas of Australian diplomats to the Palestinian Authority on Monday, after a decision by Canberra to recognize a Palestinian state and cancel the visa of an Israeli lawmaker.

“History will remember Albanese for what he is: A weak politician who betrayed Israel and abandoned Australia’s Jews,” Netanyahu said on the official prime minister’s X account in English.

The Israeli lawmaker had been due to meet with Australia’s Jewish community, which has faced a sharp rise in antisemitic attacks since the Palestinian terrorist group Hamas’s Oct. 7, 2023, massacre across southern Israel, amid the ensuing war in Gaza.

Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong on Monday called Israel’s visa revocation counter-step an “unjustified reaction” and said Netanyahu‘s government was increasing Israel’s diplomatic isolation.

Israel has been facing international pressure over the toll its military offensive against Hamas has taken on the neighboring Gaza Strip, which the terrorist group has ruled for nearly two decades.

Albanese said on Aug. 12 that Netanyahu was “in denial” about the humanitarian crisis in Gaza.

Albanese made his remark a day after announcing Australia may recognize a Palestinian state at the United Nations general Assembly in September, following France, Britain, and Canada.

Netanyahu has said this would serve as a reward for Hamas’s Oct. 7 invasion, which triggered the Gaza war.