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When questioned about Australia’s potential involvement in the Middle East, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese was candid, emphasizing the geographical and strategic distance between Australia and the region. During an interview on ABC’s 7.30, he stated that the Middle East is “a long way from Australia” and noted that Australia is “not big players” in the area.
Both Albanese and Defence Minister Richard Marles were firm in their stance against deploying Australian troops, despite the nation being among the initial supporters of the joint strikes led by the United States. Marles, speaking on the Today show, unequivocally said, “No, we’re not,” when asked about troop involvement. He added that predicting the duration of the conflict is challenging.
Marles further stated, “We are supporting the US-led action,” indicating Australia’s backing of the operation without direct military involvement.
The statement came amidst warnings of what was described as “the most-intense offensive operation” against Israel and US bases, causing heightened tensions across several Middle Eastern cities, including Dubai, Doha, Saudi Arabia, Oman, Bahrain, and Kuwait, as missile threats loomed.
It warned that “the most-intense offensive operation” ever would inflict revenge on Israel and US bases, as missiles triggered terror in Dubai, Doha, Saudi Arabia, Oman, Bahrain and Kuwait.
However, Australia’s terror threat remains unchanged at “probable”.
This means there is a greater than 50 per cent chance of an “on-shore attack or attack planning in the next 12 months”.
The threat level did not change after the Bondi Beach terrorist attack, which killed 15 innocent people and injured dozens of others, and has remained the same since 2022.
In the wake of Khamenei’s death, Albanese said Australia would not mourn his passing and said we had “not been immune from the impact of the regime’s actions”.
“We want to see, when it comes to military action, I think as always, Australia always supports diplomatic action where possible, and we hope that the actions that have been taken lead to a swift resolution,” the PM said.
Nationals leader David Littleproud said Iran had played a role in the antisemitic attacks across Sydney and Melbourne over the past few years.
“ASIO found… the Revolutionary Guard was involved with that, and the civil unrest that we’ve seen on the streets of our of our city,” Littleproud told Today.
Around 115,000 Australians were in the Middle East at the time of the strikes and countless remain stranded days later.
Australians have been urged not to travel to the Middle East as the conflict escalates.
The economic impact of the conflict is expected to hit Australians at the petrol bowser.
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards commander has claimed the Strait of Hormuz is closed, vowing to attack any ship that tries to pass through.
The Strait of Hormuz, a narrow waterway off southern Iran, is the main route for shipping crude oil from countries such as Saudi Arabia and Kuwait to the rest of the world.
Petrol prices are predicted to rise in response and the closure of the Hormuz has sparked fears over Australia’s limited reserves.
There have been no Australian casualties or injuries in the conflict.
The UAE air base housing Australian defence personnel was targeted by Iranian retaliatory missiles, however Marles later confirmed that all Australians were “safe”.
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