Gaza set to shake up Labor’s Adelaide love-in
Thousands of party faithful descending on Adelaide for the national Labor conference this week face new pressure over its Israel-Palestine position. Meanwhile, a leading local identity will take over the party’s top national job.
Thousands of party faithful, ranging from Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, state premiers and union bosses, descend on Adelaide this week for the party’s three-day conference starting Thursday, where members will debate numerous topics, including the heated debate over Israel and Palestine.
Labor’s 126-page draft national platform includes nine points on Israel-Palestine. This ranges from stating the party’s support for a two-state solution, recognising the state of Palestine, opposing the annexation of Palestinian territory and “reaffirms our belief that Israelis and Palestinians deserve to live their lives free from terror and violence”.
The draft national platform has already spurred the Israel Embassy in Canberra to issue a lengthy statement on its website outlining six areas it was concerned about in the party’s platform, including the party’s support of the International Criminal Court.
The Labor draft position that will be debated also includes the party’s support for the International Court of Justice, acknowledging its findings that Israel’s continued presence in the Occupied Palestinian Territory was “unlawful”.
“Labor urges the government to prevent any support being given to illegal settlement activity or extremist settler violence, and to implement further action and sanctions as necessary,” it said.
Meanwhile, the Australian Friends of Palestine Association (AFOPA) will line Adelaide’s Convention Centre entrance on Thursday and Friday morning as Labor leaders and rank-and-file members arrive for the conference.
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AFOPA chairperson Christa Christaki said it was “extraordinary” that the Israel Embassy “believes it should have a say in the policy platform of an Australian political party”.
“Labor delegates have a responsibility to make decisions based on Australia’s obligations under international law and the interests of the Australian people – not the preferences of a foreign government engaged in genocide,” Christaki said.
AFOPA has also penned an open letter to Labor delegates, calling for stronger action against Israel, including sanctions, an end to Australian military trade with Israel and clearer compliance with the International Criminal Court processes.
It comes just days after NSW Labor member Ed Husic – the party’s most outspoken critic on the issue of Israel-Palestine – said the party risked losing support if it continued to stifle “legitimate debate” on the rights of Palestinians in Gaza.
“What I am deeply concerned about is there are elements of fear and loathing that drive the way we respond to these issues,” Husic told a Labor Friends of Palestine event over the weekend.
Husic was unavailable to comment when contacted by InDaily.
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The conference marks the start of Adelaide identity Kate Ellis’ party presidency, succeeding former deputy Prime Minister Wayne Swan.
Ellis was the federal member for Adelaide from 2004 to 2019 and was a minister for six of those years. In 2021, after her political exit, she published a memoir called Sex Lies and Question Time, an insider account of Canberra.
A spokesperson confirmed Ellis would be at this week’s conference; she is currently on a six-month Spanish sabbatical with her husband, Adelaide media identity David Penberthy and two children.
Penberthy announced the break on his 5aa radio show last month, saying the couple would see out the rest of 2026 from Spain.
It comes as pressure mounts internationally against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, for whom the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants in 2024 over allegations of using starvation as a method of warfare.
Last week, New York City mayor Zohran Mamdani said he was considering options to arrest Netanyahu on the controversial prime minister’s upcoming visit to New York. US President Donald Trump has since come out in support of Netanyahu.
In the Israeli Embassy’s statement about Australian Labor’s platform, it claimed the arrest warrants were “legally unfounded, reflected institutional bias, and made a mockery of international criminal law”.
Husic is also leading the charge to implement a gas export tax, as plans to redistribute wealth from resources to the general public are among the other items on the agenda in Labor’s draft platform.
Husic will join Australia Institute co-Chief Executive Officer Richard Dennis at a panel event discussing the prospect of a tax on Thursday afternoon.
Also expected at the conference is plenty of debate around AUKUS, following Midnight Oil frontman and former Labor Environment Minister Peter Garrett’s independent inquiry in Adelaide into AUKUS last week.
Asked about the sentiment around AUKUS going into this week’s conference, SA Premier Peter Malinauskas said it was his “firm view that overwhelmingly within the Australian Labor Party, you see now sustained support and commitment towards AUKUS”.
“The Labor Party is a big political piece of machinery. There are a lot of people with very different views, and I, for one, try to avoid predicting what will be said by some on the floor of a very democratic body because anything is possible,” Malinauskas said.
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