IANS | 10 Jun, 2024
Australia will attend an international conference on the humanitarian
crisis in Gaza, the government has confirmed.
Foreign Affairs Minister Penny Wong on Monday announced that Anne Aly,
the minister for early childhood development and minister for youth, will
represent Australia at the conference in Amman, Jordan, that has been convened
by Jordan, Egypt and the United Nations (UN), Xinhua news agency reported.
Wong said that Egyptian-born Aly was chosen because of her lived
experience and understanding of the conflict in the Middle East.
They said in a joint statement that Australia has been clear that Israel
must comply with the orders of the International Court of Justice and allow the
provision of basic services and humanitarian assistance to Gaza and reiterated
calls for the war to end.
"The humanitarian situation in Gaza is catastrophic. Over 1 million
Palestinians are facing catastrophic levels of food insecurity, and around 1.7
million people have been displaced, many several times over. Humanitarian
access remains grossly inadequate," Aly said.
Since the beginning of the conflict on October 7, 2023, the Australian
government has committed 62.5 million Australian dollars (41.1 million US
dollars) in humanitarian assistance to the region, including 41 million
Australian dollars (27.0 million US dollars) to address urgent needs in Gaza.