Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong has urged for restraint in the Middle East and reiterated a warning for Australians to leave Lebanon.
This follows two days of device explosions in Lebanon, including that of walkie-talkies and pagers.
Walkie-talkies used by Iran-backed terrorist organisation Hezbollah blew up on Sept. 18, killing 20 people and injuring more than 450.
This followed thousands of Hezbollah pagers exploding in Lebanon, killing 12 people and injuring thousands.
In an interview on Sept. 19, Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong said, “Obviously, we’ve seen the attacks, the pager events and deaths in relation to Hezbollah.”
Wong highlighted the group is a terrorist organisation and emphasised the Australian government had been concerned about rising tensions for a while.
In response to questions about whether Israel should take responsibility, Wong said, “Well, I don’t speak for the government of Israel, and that’s a matter for them.”
“What I would say is we know that Israel lives in a unique security environment, and we also know that we see a cycle of violence in the Middle East. We would like to see peace, and the peoples of the region would like to see peace,” she said.
“Again, I would make the point I’ve made about Hezbollah; it’s a terrorist organisation. We list it as such in Australia. But ultimately, what we want to see is an end to this cycle of violence from all sides.”
The foreign minister said her advice to Australians, along with the prime minister’s, has been to avoid traveling to Lebanon.
“There is a risk of a regional escalation, and the number of Australians in Lebanon would make it very difficult for the government to assist everyone at one time. So we would say to people: a regional escalation and the risk of that means you should come home,” she added.
Wong also warned Australians the airport Lebanon’s capital could suddenly close during a conflict.
“I understand there are still commercial options available, but one of the things I did say some time ago is that there is a possibility Beirut Airport will close quickly in the event of a conflict, and that is why we’ve been saying to people for some time you should leave.
Blinken expressed concern the escalation in Lebanon could “derail” or “threaten to slow” a potential agreement between Israel and Hamas.
Birmingham Warns Against Blind Eye to Terrorism
Meanwhile, Shadow Foreign Minister Simon Birmingham underscored the need for peace but emphasized Hezbollah is responsible for attacks against Israel.“And of course, we all wish to see ultimately steps taken towards peace. But we do have to remember that Hezbollah is a listed and active terrorist organisation that relentlessly sends rockets into Israel,” he said.
Birmingham highlighted that just two months ago, the terrorist organisation had sent rockets that killed children in a playground in the Golan Heights and displaced tens of thousands of Israelis from the north of Israel.
He added Hezbollah “acts in constant defiance of a U.N. resolution that is meant to essentially keep southern Lebanon as a demilitarized zone.”
“But instead, Hezbollah is constantly using that as a base for their rocket and military attacks on Israel,” he said.
While Australia wanted to see situations that can achieve long-term peace and stability across the region, that could not achieved simply by “turning a blind eye to terrorism” or letting terrorists get away with their actions. Birmingham said.
