Greens Senator Sarah Hanson-Young has interrupted a press conference to demand Nationals leader David Littleproud “say something about the slaughtered children” amid mounting tensions over the Gaza-Israel conflict.
Senator Hanson-Young lashed out at her views when she encountered Mr Littleproud in the hallway on Thursday as he was answering questions from reporters.
“Why don’t you say something about the slaughtered children?” she joked as the astonished Nationals leader quickly resumed answering questions.
The interruption came after Opposition Leader Peter Dutton called for a blanket ban on entry from Gaza, a move condemned by the Labor Party and the Greens.
Mr Dutton appeared to disagree with the 79 coalition MPs who called for visas to be banned for Hamas supporters, rather than for all Gaza residents.
Ms Hanson-Young accused Mr Dutton of leading the “nasty party”.
“It’s typical Trump, it’s despicable and it needs to be exposed,” she told reporters.
Mr Dutton told Sky News on Wednesday that there is uncertainty about Gaza refugees and their loyalty to the Palestinian terror organisation Hamas.
Greens Senator Sarah Hanson-Young (centre) interrupted a press conference by Nationals leader David Littleproud (right) on Thursday.
“Why don’t you say something about the children being slaughtered?” she asked Mr Littleproud
“I don’t think people should be coming out of that war zone at this point. It’s not wise to do that and I think it jeopardizes our national security,” he said.
His call to ban Palestinians from seeking safety in Australia was branded “racist” by Teal MP Zali Steggall in the House of Representatives plenary on Thursday.
“These are families that you are trying to portray… as if they are all terrorists, that they are all to be mistrusted, that they are not entitled to humanitarian aid,” she said.
“Stop being racist.”
Mr Dutton called the comment ‘unparliamentary’ and requested that it be withdrawn, with Ms Steggall eventually complying with the Chair’s request.
The opposition leader later defended his comments, telling Today Show host Karl Stefanovic that he was trying to protect Australians.
Stefanovic asked: ‘Are you heartless, a heartless racist? Do you have any humanity left?’
Mr Dutton replied: ‘I think we should just put aside all the usual political nonsense.
‘We have to make decisions, and they may be difficult decisions, but they are decisions that are in the best interests of our country.
His call to ban Palestinians from seeking safety in Australia was branded “racist” by Teal MP Zali Steggall in the plenary of deputies on Thursday (pictured)
Opposition Leader Peter Dutton (pictured on Thursday) called for a blanket ban on the arrival of people from Gaza, a move condemned by the Labor Party and the Greens.
“What happened here, Karl, is that the government took people out of a war zone. In some cases, they didn’t even do personal interviews, and that’s unprecedented.”
Dutton accused Labor of putting Australians at risk and compared the situation to the idea of allowing sympathisers of al-Qaeda and ISIS into the country.
When asked if he had discussed his position with his colleagues beforehand, Mr Dutton replied: ‘It’s not a discussion for the shadow cabinet, quite frankly, it’s a discussion with the national security team.’
“It is in the interest of our country.”
ASIO chief Mike Burgess and Home Office officials have repeatedly stated that appropriate security checks are carried out on visa applicants.
The Australian government has called for a ceasefire as the death toll rises and the humanitarian situation deteriorates.