Israel has condemned Australia’s decision to deny a visa to former Israeli justice minister Ayelet Shaked on character grounds, warning in a statement on X that the decision was deeply offensive and would harm relations between the two countries.
The threat tests already-strained diplomatic ties as Australia seeks to tiptoe around the International Criminal Court’s decision to issue arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former defence chief Yoav Gallant, as well as a Hamas leader Ibrahim al-Masri, for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity in the Gaza conflict.
Former Israeli interior and justice minister Ayelet Shaked in 2021.Credit: AP
As the United States rejected the warrants, and Canada said it would abide by them, Foreign Minister Penny Wong said on Friday Australia respected the ICC’s independence but did not endorse or oppose its …