Anthony Albanese has accused Opposition leader Peter Dutton of seeking to weaponise antisemitism, urging greater social cohesion as the Israel-Gaza conflict continues.
Responding to a Coalition motion in parliament that criticised the government's response in dealing with the conflict, the prime minister hit back, saying he had been consistent in his views in calling for unity.
"The weaponisation or attempt to weaponise antisemitism in this chamber and make it a partisan issue is, frankly, beyond contempt," he said on Wednesday.
"I make no apologies for standing up against antisemitism and I will do it unequivocally ... I have a track record on this and I'm proud of it, but I also have a track record of standing up for the rights and for justice of Palestinian people.
"I make no apologies for being a consistent supporter of a two-state solution, and I make no apologies for trying to bring communities together, not divide them."
Dutton had called on the prime minister to not leave Australia for the APEC summit in San Francisco until he had assured Jewish Australians would be protected in the community.
"The prime minister should not leave this country until the national cabinet has been convened to provide assurances and support and comfort and safety to people of the Jewish community," he said.
It comes as six federal electoral offices across the country were the target of pro-Palestinian protests involving bloodied replicas of Gazan corpses.
and fellow Labor MPs Ged Kearney and Peter Khalil.
Israel has bombarded Gaza since in which more than 1,200 people were killed, according to the Israeli government, and over 200 hostages taken.
More than 11,000 people have been killed in Gaza since 7 October, according to the health ministry in Hamas-controlled Gaza.
, which has gained power in the Gaza Strip since winning legislative elections there in 2006. Its stated aim is to establish a Palestinian state, while refusing to recognise Israel's right to exist.
Hamas, in its entirety, is designated as a terrorist organisation by countries including Australia, Canada, the UK and the US. New Zealand and Paraguay list only its military wing as a terrorist group. In 2018, the United Nations General Assembly voted against a resolution condemning Hamas in its entirety as a terrorist organisation.
Cabinet minister Ed Husic, one of two Muslim ministers in the government, said too many Palestinians had died.
"The numbers absolutely are causing people deep concern. I have been worried for quite some time that Palestinians would shoulder the burden," he told ABC TV on Wednesday.
"Hamas should be held to account. But I've got to say, 4,000 children losing their lives, they are not Hamas."
Dutton says Jewish Australians fear for their safety
Dutton said his key concern was the rise of antisemitism in the community.
He has written to Albanese proposing a meeting with premiers and chief ministers to ensure greater social cohesion and a crackdown on anti-Jewish behaviour.
"I fear that there will be a significant act within our country which will cause harm to people in the Jewish community, or the community more broadly, at a time when temperatures are rising," he told reporters.
In his letter, Dutton said Jewish Australians feared for their personal safety.
Albanese met with the Israeli ambassador in Canberra on Tuesday and is expected to discuss the war on the sidelines of the APEC summit later this week.
Majority of Australians support a ceasefire
A YouGov poll released in early November found a majority of Australians were in favour of a ceasefire.
Meanwhile, the Greens successfully moved a Senate motion to observe a minute's silence in memory of the civilian lives lost in Gaza, as Israel's airstrikes and blockade on food, water, fuel and medicine stoke the growing death toll.
Greens senator Jordon Steele-John has continued to push the government to call for a ceasefire in the region.
"Children and families have faced horrific death, injury and suffering. People in Gaza are experiencing relentless bombing, those that survive the bombing have increasingly limited access to electricity, food or water," he said.
"This cannot go on."
