Socialist Alliance (Australia): End the hypocrisy on Iran; stop Israel’s war on Palestine

First published at Socialist Alliance.

Socialist Alliance condemns Israel and its Western allies, including Australia, for their role in escalating conflict in the Middle East.

Their ongoing political and military support for Israel’s genocide in Gaza and occupation of Palestine risk sparking all-out war in the Middle East.

Since Israel began its latest genocidal war on Gaza seven months ago, it has not only targeted Palestinians but launched deadly attacks on Lebanon, Syria and Iraq.

Israel has not only attacked military targets in Lebanon, it has killed about 73 civilians  including children, medics and journalists.

Israel is trying to drag its imperialist allies into a bigger war within the Middle East.

This must be condemned and opposed by all those committed to a peaceful world.

Israel launched an airstrike on April 1 against the Iranian Consulate in Damascus, killing more than 16 people.

Iran’s drone and missile attack on Israel, all aimed at military targets, was a retaliation.

Targeting a consulate or embassy of a sovereign country is against international law.

However no Western power, supposedly champions of an “international rules-based order”, condemned the April 1 attack.

Prior to that, Israel had launched many attacks on Iranian personnel in Syria and Iraq.

It also authorised numerous direct attacks on Iran including cyber, drone and other attacks. It has also assassinated Iranian scientists.

It is hypocritical for Western leaders to condemn Iran’s attack on Israel while staying silent on Israel’s clear breach of international law.

The Anthony Albanese government’s one-sided statement condemning Iran is a clear case of this.

Albanese warns that Iran’s drone and missile attack on Israel could escalate conflict in the region. He says Iran has “ignored” our call not to proceed with “these reckless attacks”.

He does not condemn Israel for bombing the Iranian consulate in Syria.

Such a one-sided statement gives cover to Israel’s actions in escalating conflict in the Middle East.

The corporate media and Labor have also fundamentally misled the public about which country is responsible for escalating the “grave threat” in the region.

Prior to its attack on Israel, Tehran’s mission to the United Nations said Iran would not have needed to retaliate if the West, the United States and Britain, had been willing to condemn Israel’s bombing of the Iranian Embassy and brought the perpetrators to justice.

Socialist Alliance recognises the Iranian regime is no friend of working people: it has actively repressed movements for democratic and women’s rights, including killing protesters.

However, in this situation, Iran was provoked by Israel — possibly deliberately —to distract international attention away from its genocide in Gaza.

The Albanese government and its Western allies including the United States and Britain have given Israel the green light to commit genocide in the Gaza Strip: more than 35,000 Palestinians are estimated to have been killed.

Worse, Western powers are complicit as they continue to arm Israel in its genocide of Palestinians despite growing calls to end arms exports.

Socialist Alliance supports a foreign policy based on peace and justice.

We will continue to demand an end to our government and the West’s imperialist intervention in the Middle East, which is the real cause of the escalating conflict and which is driving the region into a state of permanent war.

Furthermore, Socialist Alliance commits to keep fighting to end Labor’s support for Israel, including ending all arms exports to Israel — the key element allowing Israel to continue carrying out atrocities against the Palestinians.