ANKARA

Australia’s public broadcaster is facing mounting criticism for removing an interview with a prominent Palestinian advocate amid growing scrutiny of Israel’s war in Gaza.

Independent Senator Lidia Thorpe on Tuesday accused the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) of suppressing a “crucial Palestinian voice” after it reportedly pulled from its website an interview with Nasser Mashni, president of the Australia Palestine Advocacy Network (APAN).

“This morning I noticed the interview Nasser Mashni gave to ABC yesterday was pulled from their website without explanation,” Thorpe posted on X. “As the horror in Gaza escalates, it appears the ABC has chosen to suppress a crucial Palestinian voice. They should explain why.”

Mashni’s interview aired Monday, following comments by Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese condemning Israeli actions in Gaza. The interview was initially published on ABC’s website but had been removed by Tuesday morning, according to local outlet Crikey.

Albanese on Monday described Israel’s ongoing siege and blockade of Gaza as “completely unacceptable.”

“I made it very clear that Australia finds these actions as completely unacceptable, and we find Israel's excuses and explanations completely untenable and without credibility,” he told reporters. “People are starving, and the idea that a democratic state withholds supply is an outrage. Now, that is my clear position.”

Senator Thorpe, however, dismissed the remarks as inadequate and accused the government of complicity.

“We’ve heard the cries of mothers and fathers as they hold their maimed children, while Israel continues its campaign of unrelenting psychological warfare and terrorism,” she said. “Yet Albanese still offers nothing but empty words and cowardice – choosing to remain an ally of Israel.”

She urged the government to take decisive action.

“We cannot wait for Gaza to be flattened – for its people to be slaughtered and displaced – before this government pretends they were always against it,” she wrote on X.

The Israeli army has continued its assault on Gaza since October 2023, rejecting international ceasefire calls. More than 53,900 Palestinians, most of them women and children, have been killed, according to local authorities.

In November, the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant on charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity.

Israel is also facing a genocide case at the International Court of Justice over its war on the enclave.