Australian foreign minister lashes out at opposition for not supporting Gaza cease-fire

By Anadolu staff

ANKARA (AA) - Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong on Sunday lashed out at the opposition for not supporting the growing calls for a cease-fire in Gaza and Lebanon.

Wong said that the opposition leader, Peter Dutton, is 'extreme' for not supporting Middle East cease-fire calls, local broadcaster SBS News reported.

Wong's comments came after Liberal senator James Paterson said the opposition wants an end to lingering conflict in the Middle East, but refused to back a cease-fire.

Wong observed that the opposition's stance on the cease-fire issue is "at odds" with the international community, including the US.

"A few days ago, Mr. Dutton said the prime minister should be condemned for calling for a cease-fire," she said in a statement.

"Now the Liberals finally realise they're at odds with the international community including the United States, who are all pressing for peace — but he still can't bring himself to do so."

Wong said Dutton was "so focused on dividing Australians over this conflict that he doesn't realise how isolated his position is".

"We know Mr. Dutton is negative about everything but it's pretty extreme to be negative about a cease-fire that saves civilian lives and prevents further disastrous escalation of conflict," she further said.

Earlier this week, Dutton accused the government of trying to "walk both sides" in relation to Middle East conflict.

Israel has mounted massive airstrikes across Lebanon against what it claims are Hezbollah targets since Sept. 23, killing at least 1,437 people, injuring over 4,123 others and displacing more than 1.34 million.

The aerial campaign is an escalation from a year of cross-border warfare between Israel and Hezbollah since the start of its offensive on the Gaza Strip, in which Israel has killed nearly 42,200 victims, most of them women and children, since a Hamas attack last year.

Despite international warnings that the Mideast was on the brink of a regional war amid Israel’s relentless attacks on Gaza and Lebanon, it expanded the conflict by launching an incursion into southern Lebanon on Oct. 1.