Australian officials continue to assist 67 people who want to leave Gaza with the situation described as dire on the final day of a temporary ceasefire.
Sixteen more hostages were freed and there are unconfirmed reports an Israeli family – including an infant – was killed by an Israeli bombardment.
The released hostages taken by Hamas – a designated terrorist organisation by the Australian government – include Israelis, Thais and dual nationals in exchange for Palestinian prisoners.
Assistant Foreign Affairs Minister Tim Watts said it remained extremely difficult for anyone to leave Gaza.
Officials have managed to secure the safe passage of 131 Australians from the besieged strip since the bombardments began.
Those who left were met by Australian officials at the Egyptian border and provided onward travel to the capital Cairo, where they received more necessities such as nappies, baby formula, accommodation and assistance getting home.
“It is a dire humanitarian situation on the ground and we want to get them to safety as soon as we can,” Mr Watts told ABC TV on Thursday.
Australian diplomats continue to work with regional partners and countries with influence in the region to secure the safe passage of citizens out of Gaza.
Mr Watts called for an extension of the temporary ceasefire and steps towards a long-term peace deal through a two-state solution.
“It feels like a long way away at the moment but that is where we need to go.”
Labor frontbencher Ed Husic said it was important all politicians worked to quell division at home as the release of the hostages and the sustained deaths of innocent Palestinians spurred protests in Australia.
He said it has been a tough time for both Israelis and Palestinians in Australia, pointing to the United Nations’ estimate that more than two-thirds of the more than 15,000 civilians killed in Gaza being women and children.
“My parents came from a part of the world that tore itself apart in terms of ethnic and religious hate,” he told reporters in Canberra, referring to his family immigrating from Bosnia.
“A guiding principle for me has been I never want to be the politician that contributes to that type of division.
“You can’t be standing up and speaking up against Islamophobia and ignoring anti-Semitism – both anti-Semitism and Islamophobia are corrosive, absolutely corrosive to our social fabric.”
Opposition home affairs spokesman James Paterson condemned as “despicable” a protest in a Melbourne hotel against a visiting Israeli delegation.
“What kind of person goes to harass and protest the family members of the victims of hostage-taking by a terrorist organisation? You have to be a pretty sick person to think that’s an appropriate way to behave,” he told Sky.
Mr Husic said while there was always room for peaceful protest, people needed to think about where they should be held as personal space should be respected.
“When we hold protests, that selection should be very sensitive. We don’t need to be holding protests in front of synagogues or in front of mosques.
“Let’s think about protesting and expressing ourselves in a way that keeps the country together.”
Source: AAP
