‘If Australia is to have any influence at all in resolving the horrendous carnage now taking place in the Middle East it needs to demonstrate that it acts independently of American pressure.” writes Dennis Altman at Pearls & Irritations

‘The politicians who lament the fraying of our ties with Israel seem totally unconcerned about the impact of our position on countries far more significant to Australia, such as Indonesia and Malaysia, whose support for Palestine recognition goes far further than anything supported by the Albanese government.’