Labor Senator Fatima Payman has quit two parliamentary foreign affairs committees after splitting with the party over policy on Israel.Credit:Alex Ellinghuasen
“The government’s policy is clear – we support a two-state solution,” a government spokesperson said.
Labor MPs said they did not believe Payman had been ordered to step down by government leadership,but had instead decided to do so herself to avoid being targeted by the Coalition and the Greens.
Payman did not respond to a request for comment.
Liberal MP Julian Leeser,who called for Albanese to remove Payman from her committee positions,said:“Someone who uses a phrase that calls for the violent destruction of the Jewish people has no place on the Joint Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs,Defence and Trade.”
Jewish groups regard the “From the river to the sea” slogan as a coded call for the elimination of Israel,while others have insisted it is simply a call for freedom and equal rights for Palestinians.
Speaking at Parliament House during budget week,Payman said:“Instead of advocating for justice,I see our leaders performatively gesture defending the oppressor’s right to oppress,while gaslighting the global community about the rights of self-defence.