Zoe Daniel, a former ABC journalist running as an independent, signed an open letter accusing the Israeli government of unleashing “a brutal war against the besieged population of Gaza”.
The candidate for the Victorian seat of Goldstein has also told The Australian the issue of whether Israel is guilty of war crimes is a “complex matter of international law” best left for – “experts to determine”.
Revelations about Ms Daniel’s stance on Israel come amid a focus on the policies of independents running in seats targeting government MPs while being funded by centralised climate groups.
The Australian reported on Tuesday that a key figure behind independent candidate Allegra Spender’s tilt in the Sydney seat of Wentworth supports the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement and has criticised Australia’s “shocking support” of Israel.
Ms Daniel is running against incumbent Liberal MP Tim Wilson in the seat of Goldstein, which has a significant Jewish population of 6.8 per cent, according to census data. The letter she signed in 2021 called for media coverage of “Palestine” to improve by respecting the rights of journalists “to publicly and openly express personal solidarity with the Palestinian cause”.
It also accused Israel of running an “apartheid regime against Palestinians” and incorrectly claimed the democratic nation had been “deliberately targeting the media” by bombing the AlJawhara tower in Gaza.
Read the article by Sharri Markson and Remy Varga in The Australian.