Australian arms and ammunition exports to Israel have totalled $13m in value over the past five years, according to trade figures that will fuel fresh political debate about transparency.
The Greens’ defence spokesperson, David Shoebridge, called on the government to explain exactly what items have been exported to Israel, saying the public had a right to know “the full extent of Australia’s involvement in this dreadful conflict”.
The call comes as the prime minister, Anthony Albanese, met some of the relatives of Israelis taken hostage by Hamas and expressed his horror “that people attending a concert were hunted down” in southern Israel on 7 October.
The foreign affairs minister, Penny Wong, has previously criticised “a lot of misinformation on social media in relation to the provision of weapons”.
She told reporters last week: “Australia has not supplied weapons to Israel since the start of the Hamas-Israeli conflict.”
Shoebridge will on Wednesday point to export figures compiled by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade and will call for more transparency.
When narrowed to the category “arms and ammunition”, these figures show that the value of such exports to Israel totalled $13m over the past five years, including $2.3m in 2022.
“We are only calling on the government to provide basic transparency measures that are standard practice in countries like the US,” Shoebridge said.
“That information is needed to stop us exporting military equipment to countries actively involved in human rights abuses.”
The Department of Defence has repeatedly said any military-related export applications are assessed for “human rights risks and Australia’s compliance with its international obligations”.
Aid agencies visited Parliament House in Canberra on Tuesday to urge the Australian government to push for a “swift and lasting ceasefire” in Gaza, as the temporary four-day pause in conflict between Israel and Hamas was extended a further two days.
The Australian government has repeatedly affirmed Israel’s right to respond to the Hamas attacks of 7 October, when about 1,200 people were killed and 240 others were taken hostage, but has also urged the country to adhere to the rules of war and prevent civilian deaths.
At least 14,800 Palestinians, including thousands of children, have been killed in the Gaza Strip since Israel began its bombardment and ground invasion of the besieged territory, according to the Hamas-run health ministry.
The chief executive of Oxfam Australia, Lyn Morgain, said the four-day pause allowed the group to “deliver a drop of aid into an ocean of need” and that the extra two days were not enough.
The CFMEU national secretary, Zach Smith, said the construction union wanted “to see the federal government join the chorus of people that are calling for a permanent ceasefire, but also full humanitarian access”.
Relatives and friends of some of the hostages held by Hamas in Gaza held an emotional press conference on the lawns of Parliament House on Tuesday to call for the immediate release of their loved ones.
Iris Haim, the mother of Yotam Haim, 28, who was kidnapped from kibbutz Kfar Aza on 7 October, said her son was a heavy metal drummer with a “big heart” but had a medical condition.
“He doesn’t have his medicine … we want him back soon,” she said.
Haim said she personally wanted a ceasefire until all of the hostages were returned to Israel and she argued Hamas was engaging in “psychological terror” as families waited for the next list of names for release.
Albanese later met with the visiting relatives to acknowledge their “ongoing suffering and trauma” and said his government “unequivocally condemns the terrorist action that led to such a tragic loss of life for the people of Israel on 7 October”.
“We are concerned about the rise of antisemitism that is seen globally and unfortunately there has been some reflection of that here in Australia,” Albanese said.
The agriculture minister, Murray Watt, told the Senate it was important to condemn the “abhorrent” rise in both antisemitism and Islamophobia in Australia.
