Australian Deputy PM describes calls for visa ban for Gazan migrants as 'disgrace'

Canberra, Aug 16 (IANS) Australia's Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles has described calls for the government to deny visas for all Palestinians fleeing war-torn Gaza as a "disgrace".

Deputy Prime Minister Marles, who is also minister for defence, said on Friday that opposition leader Peter Dutton's push for a Gaza visa ban could increase tensions in Australia, Xinhua news agency reported.

Dutton on Wednesday called for the government to reject visas for all Palestinians fleeing Gaza, warning of a threat to national security.

His comments have been condemned as "divisive and discriminatory" by the governing Labor Party, the Greens, and Islamic groups and as racist by independent Member of Parliament (MP) Zali Steggall.

Marles said that Dutton's comments could have real-world consequences and that security checks for all migrants coming to Australia from Gaza remain the same as when Dutton was responsible for immigration as the minister for home affairs between 2017 and 2021.

"To be frank, I think what we've seen in the Parliament over the last 48 hours has been a disgrace from the leader of the opposition," Marles told Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) radio. "Those of us who are engaged in public discourse, the words that we use, the language that we engage in, does have a real-world effect."

Earlier in August, Director-General of the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation (ASIO) Mike Burgess warned politicians to be careful not to inflame tensions after the official terror alert level was raised from "possible" to "probable."

At the same time, Burgess said that Palestinians who have expressed rhetorical support for Hamas, a listed terror organisation in Australia, would not necessarily be blocked from entering the country.

Data released by the Department of Home Affairs on Wednesday revealed that the government has granted 2,922 visas to Palestinians since the October 7 Hamas-led attack on Israel and rejected 7,111 applications. In the same period, 8,746 visas have been granted to Israeli citizens and 235 applications rejected.

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