QUESTIONS WITHOUT NOTICE

Senator WONG (South Australia—Minister for Foreign Affairs and Leader of the Government in the Senate) (14:21): Well, first, in relation to that last assertion, I would remind you and I would remind the chamber that I think Prime Minister Netanyahu's government has made very clear their displeasure at the actions that the Albanese government has taken, including, as I indicated, the action that was being taken in relation to Australian diplomats in Ramallah, including the statements that Prime Minister Netanyahu has made.

Some of the action we have been taking I outlined yesterday, and I will do so again. I would note, because of what has been asserted in the question, that the UK foreign secretary has said that the UK hopes the legislation to give effect to this would be in place in six to nine months. We currently have sanctions on Israeli extremists for the settler violence terrorising Palestinian communities in the West Bank.

Our sanctions target extremist settlers. Our sanctions target entities including settlements, who are responsible for the horrific violence and human rights abuses. So right now, already, Australians cannot trade with those entities or individuals, and those sanctions apply to Australian citizens and corporations wherever they are in the world.

Australian law already bans buying, importing or transporting goods from sanctioned individuals and entities, and there are substantial offences associated with the breach of those sanctions. We have taken action with international partners to respond to the actions of the Netanyahu government, which are clearly aimed at the extinguishment of the possibility of a two-state solution.

They include not only the sanctions I have described earlier but also the travel bans and the targeted financial sanctions on Israeli ministers and others that I have described. (Time expired) The PRESIDENT: Senator Faruqi, first supplementary?