Australian government confirms Golan Heights policy after Foreign Office calls 'Israeli town'
LONDON: The Australian government has reiterated its position that the Golan Heights are occupied territory, following recent comments by Foreign Minister Penny Wong, who called the area “a city in northern Israel”, The Guardian reported on Wednesday.
Wong's comments, made in a statement posted on social media platforms X and Instagram, sparked a wave of backlash online, questioning whether she recognized Israel's sovereignty over the region Israel seized from Syria during the 1967 Six-Day War.
This happened after a rocket attack on the city's football field in the Golan Heights, which killed 12 children.
The controversy arose from Wong's post, which began with the statement: “Australia unequivocally condemns the strike on the northern Israeli town of Majdal Shams.” At the same time, the Golan Heights were not called the occupied territory in the statement.
The omission has raised concerns from groups such as the Australian Palestinian Advocacy Network, which described the language used as “disturbing”, pointing out that international recognition of Israel's sovereignty over the Golan Heights is limited, mostly recognized only by Israel and the US under the Trump administration.
In response, the press secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade clarified that there have been no changes in Australia's policy. “There is no change in our position that the Golan Heights are occupied by Israel as defined by the UN Security Council,” a spokesman for Guardian Australia said. “Our longstanding position is that the Golan Heights is an issue that must be resolved by Israel and Syria through negotiations in the context of a comprehensive peace settlement.”
A government source explained that the purpose of Wong's statement was to highlight the danger of escalation and to condemn the strikes that resulted in civilian casualties in Majdal Shams. The source added that the message “acknowledges the fact that the city is under the administration and occupation of Israel.”
The issue gained further attention following a visit by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to the predominantly Druze village of Majdal Shams, where he pledged a “tough” response to a recent rocket attack that killed 12 children. Netanyahu's visit was met with protests from some local residents. Israeli and US officials have linked the attack to Hezbollah, although the Lebanese armed group has denied involvement.
The international community has long contested Israel's control over the Golan Heights. A UN Security Council resolution in November 1967 asserted the “inadmissibility of the seizure of territory by war” and called on Israel to withdraw from the occupied territories. In addition, in 1981 the Security Council unanimously declared that “Israel's decision to impose its laws, jurisdiction and administration on the occupied Syrian Golan Heights is null and void and has no international legal force.”
In a notable departure from the international consensus, former US President Donald Trump announced in 2019 that the US would recognize Israel's sovereignty over the Golan Heights.
The situation has led to calls for clarification on Australia's position. Jordan Steele-John, foreign affairs spokesman for the Australian Greens, called on Minister Wong to align her statement with official department policy, saying: “The public deserves to know why the minister's position appears to be at odds with her own department.”
The controversy follows Australia's decision last August to officially designate the West Bank, East Jerusalem and Gaza as occupied Palestinian territories, in line with international law and the position of a number of allies, including Britain.
