Rear admiral

• Talleyrand was an archetypal exponent of realpolitik, and history provides numerous examples of the validity of his remark.
• One is the prolonged US bombing of North Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos during the Vietnam war in the late 1960s and early 1970s.
• Though the ministry is managed by Hamas, the World Health Organization describes its data collection as “credible and well developed”.
• Israel claims 13,000 of those killed were Hamas fighters, though it has not said how it calculated that figure.

Claims of poor coordination refuted

• The IDF and defence ministry claimed the strikes on the World Central Kitchen vehicles followed misidentification and poor coordination at night in complex war conditions because of suspicion an armed militant was travelling with them.
• The Israeli newspaper Haaretz, citing defence sources, has refuted these claims.
• The army’s killing of seven aid workers in the Gaza Strip on Monday night “stemmed from poor discipline among field commanders, not a lack of coordination between the army and aid organisations”.

How will this affect Australia’s position?

• Albanese said he expressed Australia’s outrage at Frankcom’s death and said he wanted “full accountability”.
• He added that he made clear Australia believes humanitarian assistance must reach people in Gaza unimpeded and in large quantities.
• It also suggested Netanyahu has a closer eye on his political standing in Israel than the international reaction to the deaths.

Don’t expect much change

• The reality is not much is likely to change in terms of Australia’s dealings with Israel.
• Foreign Minister Penny Wong has already made clear no Australian military equipment has been sold to Israel since the start of the Gaza war.
• Australia’s defence exports to Israel are in any case miniscule – A$13 million over the past five years.
• Wong has said many times Israel has the right to defend itself but the way it does so matters.

Ian Parmeter does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.